The Colony
by shell29bell
Summary: It began with a simple flu. And 3 months later, all hell broke loose. Now they are just trying to survive. Can Bella help Edward find the cure when every last thing he cares about is on the line? BxE
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight.**

**Prologue**

**BPOV**

He stumbled into the ER clutching at his sides. From several feet away I could hear the tell tale wheezing and see the blue tinge to his lips. I gently nudged the doctor next to me, attempting to wake him. I only managed to whisper Carlisle's name in my own weakened state. We had been awake for days. In the beginning, our rag tag team had furiously worked together to try and save the dying.

Recently we realized our efforts were futile.

Our new task had been to let those suffering die with as little pain as possible.

Carlisle's head jerked up at my nudge and before his eyes could clear from the haze of sleep he was already walking toward the man who had now collapsed. Carlisle kneeled beside him and pulled a syringe from his pocket and quickly injected the man's deteriorating form with Oxycodone. Between wheezes the man mumbled "thank you" before succumbing to the effects of the drug and was brought hopefully closer to death.  
I hurried over to join Carlisle in his efforts of moving the man to an empty stretcher nearby. I gently pulled the covers up to the patient's neck. The act was an illusion of comfort and safety. It made me feel as though I was doing the job I came here to do, nurse the sick to health and comfort the dying.

The quiet hum of the fluorescent lights was the only noise in this hospital's emergency room and it surrounded me. The noise seemed to grow louder with nothing to compete with. No beeping machinery. No cries of the dying and their families. No sounds of traffic. No sirens alerting us of incoming patients. No patients waiting to be seen.

It began with a simple flu. The CDC and the WHO reported the symptoms to emergency rooms around the country. Soon after the initial outbreak, emergency rooms began reporting deaths of patients showing similar symptoms. The public was alerted. The WHO raised the pandemic phase level to 6 and the CDC posted a level 5 PSI, predicting at least as many deaths as the Spanish flu outbreak in 1918. As the cases began spreading faster worldwide the WHO and UN collaberated to suspend all international travel. But it was too late. The number of deadly cases continued to climb.

Families, then whole towns, had been quarantined.

Emergency rooms overflowed with the sick and their loved ones looking for relief.

It soon became known to the doctors and the affected that the only relief was death. For months the CDC and the WHO continued to send reports to the media of hope that a vaccine was imminent. Press conferences were held regularly to answer questions posed by the public. As time went on and people continued to die the public grew restless. The riots began three days ago after the CDC's announcement that a minimum 40% of the world's population were affected and expected to die. There was no cure and no preventative vaccine. The president took to the airwaves to plead for understanding and peace. His speech did little to encourage the masses as he was visibly ill. Martial Law was enforced in all major cities. The public felt betrayed. They had been lied to for months and blamed their illness and their losses on the people who had been dishonest.

I caught news bits when I could. We had been swamped with patients. The hospital had been reduced to work conditions not unlike third world countries. Many staff members had already died from the near constant exposure to the Flu. Some walked out the doors and never looked back. The dying lined the hallways to make room for those that were healthy yet injured in the riots. Those who were unaffected by the virus took what they could load in their bags and cars and left the city.

I was brought out of my reverie by a gentle squeeze on my shoulder. I turned to see Esme, Carlisle's wife, standing next to me and offering a hot cup of coffee. Carlisle had insisted she come stay at the hospital the day before the rioting started. She tried to refuse, claiming she would only be in the way at a time like this, until Carlisle had threatened to come escort her himself. Although she was not qualified to care for patients she had been there for all of our crew until it was just the 3 of us left. I swayed on my feet as I reached for it and dragged my feet towards the closest chair. I sipped the hot liquid and shuddered. I hate the taste of coffee but I needed it so often to function it was almost a necessity now.

I scrubbed a hand over my face and tried to bring it through my hair. "Ugh" I groaned. _When was the last time I showered_? I raise an arm and sniffed my pit. Esme giggled at my ridiculous behavior. "Go hit the showers" Esme ordered. "Carlisle wants to talk to us when you're done". I finished my coffee and stood again. As I walked toward the locker room I felt the caffeine begin to circulate and sighed in relief.

We sat together in the empty cafeteria picking at the last of the canned peaches and drinking Alphabet soup from Styrofoam cups. Carlisle cleared his throat and looked out the windows at the smoldering skyline around us. Off in the distance you could see plumes of smoke rising from several fires still burning. The black smoke was the only remnant of the chaos that had engulfed our world in the last several days.

Carlisle turned his gaze to us and spoke slowly as if each word was draining him physically. Carlisle is a brilliant Trauma Doctor. He has always been quick on his feet with a diagnosis or silly joke but at this moment he struggled to find the words. "I was listening to the scanners and trying the radios. I can't reach anyone." He sighed heavily and continued "I think we need to find a smaller space that can offer us better protection. We will gather what we can carry before we leave. We'll need batteries, medical supplies, and flashlights. We'll stay here tonight. We will travel together and only during the day. "Esme and I sat in silence, trying to process what the real world had become as we had been nestled in the fortress of the hospital. We both nodded in agreement. "We'll meet in the doctor's lounge in an hour. We'll sleep there and first light tomorrow we leave." We all nodded together in agreement.

I left my chair and walked towards a shelved cart usually reserved to deliver food or flowers to the patients. I wheeled it into the large pantry in the kitchen and began stacking as many cans and other nonperishable items as the shelves would hold. Carlisle left to collect medical supplies and shelf stable medicines and Esme went down to the laundry to gather several pairs of hospital scrubs. We met up again an hour later to inventory what we had before we finally let the exhaustion take us.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Puffy hearts to everyone who put me on alert. Puffy hearts AND hugs to my reviewers. Bublichka is my Beta/pimp and she holds my hand and pulls me down from the ledge when I go all Emo. Just a warning, there is a vague reference to a suicide attempt.**

**Disclaimer: as always Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight and us all.**

**BPOV**

Muted sunlight crept into the doctor's lounge and illuminated the still forms of Carlisle and Esme. They lay next to each other holding hands and silent. I glanced towards them and was greeted with a wry smile from both of them.

"Did you both sleep as well as I did?" I asked before rolling out of bed towards the bathroom.

I wasn't expecting an answer because I knew we all lay awake listening to each other breathing and straining our ears to hear any sound that seemed out of place for most of the night.

Lack of sleep was nothing new to us these past several days. We would sleep when there wasn't a job to do and we finally felt safe.

I pushed the food laden cart towards the hospital entrance and we all carried an overstuffed backpack on our back.

The automatic doors slowly slid open and we stopped short of passing through. The sun barely passed through the haze created by the burning of Atlanta. It caused everything to be thrown in an unnatural shadow. The stench caused by burning rubber was ovewhelming and I looked to my left to see the charred remains of an ambulance.

The air hung eerily silent. We stood in quiet awe at the destruction around us.

I turned to Carlisle and Esme.

"We should at least check nearby, in case someone needs help?"

My offer of humanity came out as a question. For once my training did not seem adequate for such an endeavor.

Carlisle gave a nod and turned a serious look towards me and Esme.

"Nothing" he said firmly "and I mean nothing is worth your life. If we are approached and threatened give them food, give them water give them anything...." he trailed off looking dejected.

Carlisle gave a heavy sigh obviously feeling inadequate in his current self-imposed position of protecting two women.

Even though I nodded my head in agreement to his instructions, I couldn't help but feel a little insulted at his insinuation that we weren't above taking care of ourselves. I hadn't taken self defense and kick boxing every Thursday for nothing.

I pulled my hair up into a ponytail and followed Carlisle as he turned and began walking East on Clifton Road.

We passed several high rises seemingly protected by high fences and gates. We stood outside of each, calling out loudly. After several minutes with no answer, we would move on.

Shop windows were broken and the store contents seemed to spill out onto the walkway and were either picked through or destroyed.

Electronic stores seemed the worst hit and we bantered back and forth over the absurdity of needing a flat screen while the world was going to hell.

Esme giggled as she muttered "Steal one, get one free."

Carlisle snickered and soon his shoulders were shaking with restrained laughter.

I gave an unladylike snort at the tears streaming down his red face. Esme and I leaned into each other as we succumbed to hysterical giggling at her poorly made joke.

I surmised that if and when TVs were again necessary at least the thieves would have a nice one.

It was surprisingly easy to joke about our current situation. Humor kept the absolute terror pulled back just enough to let us function for the task at hand.

After searching for several hours, we decided to head back towards the hospital and continue to make our way towards the various warehouses in the more industrial part of town.

As the hospital came into view, we noticed a military grade Hummer idling next to the burnt out shell of the ambulance. We picked up our pace and Carlisle worked his backpack from his back as we came closer. Carlisle raised his hand to get us to fall behind him and stay back. I scoffed at him and matched his steps toward the imposing car.

Glancing into the back windows we were able to make out a still form lying across the seats. Carlisle wrenched open the door calling out to the apparently female form.

I heard the automatic doors of the hospital slide open behind us and turned my head to see a hulking form in camouflaged gear, his arms full of obviously scavenged medical supplies and several bottles of water poking out of the various pockets of his pants.

"Get away from her!!' He bellowed, dropping the medical supplies and rushed forward to yank Carlisle out of the way.

He quickly spun him round and held Carlisle's arms behind his back and pushed him forward to hold him against the Hummer.

Carlisle maintained his balance.

"I'm a doctor" he calmly stated and nodding towards me he continued "and she is a nurse. We work here. We can help you."

The soldier loosened his grip on Carlisle and walked to block the open back passenger door of the truck. He was obviously still in protector mode and tried to instill an air of authority.

"I came across this woman in a high rise I was scoping for survivors. She is obviously in shock from an unknown trauma. I had to wrestle her away from her home. She struggled with me in an attempt to run back into the apartment. She kept screaming about her baby. I looked into her apartment and there was no one else there. Sir, I think she had attempted to take her life. Her wrists, sir, they're..."

His voice was gruff with fatigue and although he was young his eyes shone with the wisdom of living in a war zone for an extended period of time. I wondered if he saw the same on our eyes.

Carlisle turned toward me and I wordlessly ran into the hospital and grabbed the nearest clean gurney and raced back.

When I returned, the soldier held out his hand to Carlisle, introducing himself and apologizing.

"Emmett McCarty, sir." He began "National Guard. I am sorry about roughing you up"

Carlisle returned the introduction and in turn introduced Esme and me. Esme smiled and I gave a small wave.

Emmett helped load our patient onto the gurney and we all walked into the hospital to care for this mystery woman.

Esme brought Emmett down to the cafeteria with her to make coffee while I assisted Carlisle in the exam of our Jane Doe. She was malnourished and had, within the past few days, attempted suicide by slitting her wrists. The gashes were not deep enough to accomplish her desired result but would scar and leave her obviously marked. The whole time, the woman remained still, her eyes staring off at nothing.

Upon Carlisle's exam he concluded that she was at most 3 months postpartum. I closed my eyes against the emotions threatening to spill out and slowly shook my head.

All the mothers who had witnessed their children dying had been blissfully reunited by death shortly after. This was our first exposure of loss so deeply grieved.

Carlisle cleaned and dressed her gashes and I guided her to the next floor which housed the birthing suites. The rooms on this floor were large enough to accomadate our group and their bathrooms held large bath tubs which would make my next task much easier. I peaked into several before finding one devoid of anything but a bed, knowing that the equipment usually held in these rooms would cause more undue stress to this severly broken woman.

As I sat her on the bed, Esme joined me and began undressing her as I filled the tub with warm water. Together we lowered her into the tub. As the warm water engulfed her body, her eyes came to life and she looked at us. I saw the realization in her eyes as a low guttural animalistic cry broke forth and echoed through the room.

She folded in on herself and cried as we attempted to wash her hair and body. At first she did nothing but repeat "my baby, my sweet baby". But soon her story spilled forth.

Her name was Rosalie King. She was married to a prominent business man who traveled extensively, often leaving her alone for weeks at a time. She had no extended family. She spoke of loneliness and days filled with superficial friendships. When she became pregnant, she was overjoyed and looked forward to the day when she was no longer alone.

She gave birth alone at this very hospital. Her husband had been traveling overseas for business and became stranded when they suspended all international travel. She never heard from him again and assumed he was dead. She had kept herself and her newborn son secluded in their home and still, the virus found them. Royce King, Jr died in his mother's arms on his 6th week birthday.

On her mantle sat a framed picture of a her and her newborn taken by a nurse shortly after his birth. Rosalie had fought Emmett to return and take it with her but he dragged her out of her apartment and to the hospital.

By the time Rosalie had finished speaking we had bathed and dried her. We dressed her in hospital scrubs and tucked her into the large bed. Esme and I sat on either side and offered what little comfort we could as she sobbed and hiccuped herself to sleep.

We all rejoined in the hallway just outside of Rosalie's door. We stood in an awkward silence.

"So, Emmett" Esme started hesitantly "you're in the National Guard?"

"Whole lot a good it did, huh?" he countered his statement heavy with sarcasm.

I wasn't happy with his response so I decided to be blunt.

"What happened? Where is your group or whatever?" I asked.

Emmett was quiet for several minutes and I wondered if he was going to answer me when he finally spoke.

"We were dispatched 2 weeks ago and were spread thin throughout the state. The National Guard is usually sent in to assist with natural disasters or boost up army numbers in times of war. When my group got here, too many men were already showing signs of the virus. I'm not gonna lie, we were scared. Fuck, " Emmett blushed and looked between me and Esme and apologized for his swearing.

"I'm still scared to be honest. I didn't sign up for this shit. Uh, Sorry, again. By the time the riots started, our presence here was a joke. We had 3 healthy guys left including myself. I organized patrols. We tried to help local law as best we could but it was all too little too late. We split up to run our patrols last night and were scheduled to meet up at our designated spot at 20:00. No one showed. I searched all night. I ran through their patrol routes but I didn't find any sign of them. If I find them and they are not sick or dead I'm gonna kill 'em." he finished emphatically.

"Where did you find Rosalie?" Carlisle asked next.

Emmett looked down at his feet crossed beneath him, seemingly embarrassed.

"I had to go to the bathroom."

"Why didn't you just go in the bushes?" I asked and immediately blushed at my lack of decorum for this man I didn't even know.

"I needed toilet paper" he answered gravely. I closed my eyes and shook my head.

"I'm sorry I interrupted."

He smiled and a dimple graced each cheek.

"I came upon a high rise with no gate or fences. I felt bad, but I kicked in the first door I found and rushed in trying to find the bathroom. As I was washing my hands I heard whimpering. I followed the noise and I found her lying on her bed." He shrugged his shoulders in an attempt to feign detachment to the situation but his eyes became shiny with tears.

An idea occurred to me then and I looked out the window at the end of the hallway to gauge the time.

"Emmett, do you think you could find her house again?" I asked.

"No, Bella. It's too risky" Emse chastised. I continued talking to Emmett despite her protests.

"We need to go back" I stated, and this time Carlisle spoke up against my idea while shaking his head.

"She needs that picture" I insisted.

"_WE_ are not going anywhere. _I_ will get it and bring it back before dark" he promised. Emmett stood there and absentmindedly patted the gun at his side before he walked out of sight.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

**Another quick note**: I will usually post new chapters on Monday. I am posting this early because FF(dot)net has been crazy the past couple days.

I also thought I was above begging for reviews, but it turns out I'm not. I am new at this and need the validation ;)

So when you review (hint, hint) tell me what you did when FF was down. Not too hard, right??


	3. Chapter 3

**DISCLAIMER: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight.**

**EmPOV **

I turned the corner and broke into a jog. I had two hours tops. This town after dark was scary. I hadn't been confronted but you could hear people moving around in the shadows. It was like living in a horror movie. That feeling that someone was just behind you....Fuck.

_Clear your head McCarty, you have a job to do,_ I told myself.

I tried to remember my drive after finding Rosalie but to be honest, I was so pumped with adrenaline that I had just tossed her into my Hummer and drove. The fact that I even found the hospital had been a stroke of luck. If I could find my way back to the apartment it would be a fucking miracle.

I sat it the driver's seat and took a moment to run my hands over my face. Coffee can only work so long to keep you awake. I was pushing 40 hours at this point.

I drove the way I'd come, retracing my steps. I noticed familiar sites and stores and soon enough her building loomed before me. I parked on the curb in front of the building and hurried to the front door. I kept my hand hovering over my gun and walked through the darkened hallway, keeping close to the walls.

I listened intently for noises and nearly jumped out of my skin as I inadvertently snagged my jacket on a door handle. I rolled my eyes silently scolding myself for being such a pussy. If my crew had ever seen that I would have never lived it down.

My crew.

Fucking bastards.

They'd better be dead.

I reached my target and for a brief moment, felt guilty as I looked at the damage I had done when I kicked the door in and I wondered if I had scared her horribly before I found her. She had seemed so out of it but had flipped out when we got to the broken front door. The adrenaline had kicked in full force and I had looked around anxiously for the cause of her absolute panic. I felt so bad now that I knew why she had gone berserk. I vowed to myself I would do more than bring back a picture. I scanned the room and moved towards the back of the apartment to the bedrooms. I reached the only closed door and turned the handle, gently pushing the door open.

The site that greeted me almost brought me to my knees.

While all the other rooms had looked pristine and untouched, this one room had been utterly destroyed. The crib had been overturned and the mattress was bare. Sheets and bedding had been shredded and lay hanging across the dresser. The changing table was now laying on its side with diapers, lotions and blankets pouring out.

My eyes combed the wreckage for any picture or intact memento that may someday bring comfort to Rosalie. I turned to pick my way back out to the hallway and stopped when I noticed a tiny blue hat resting on the tip of my boot. I gently picked it up and noticed how it barely covered my palm it was so small. I brought it up to my nose and smelled it. The scent of baby powder clung to the fabric and I could almost imagine the feel of the warm and silky head it had once covered.

My chest tightened as the memory of all that I had left behind took over and I remembered another baby held in the arms of another woman. She was sobbing and begging me not to go. I couldn't even look her in the eyes as I took my anger over the situation out on her. I caressed the brown curls on his head and watched a tear fall on the soft locks.

"Babe, it's OK." I huffed, frustrated over the argument that wouldn't end. "My mom will be here with you and I will be back in two weeks."

I was just going to serve my two weeks a year that was required as a National Guardsman. But the news reports were already beginning to paint a grim picture of the course of this virus. She was scared and I was torn between my contractual duty and my responsibility to my family.

I couldn't have changed the outcome even if I had stayed. If I had known, I would have held them longer, kissed her harder and begged her to forgive me for not being able to protect them. It was my fucking job after all.

I swiped angrily at the traitor tears spilling from my eyes and rushed back through the rooms looking for a picture. I finally found the only photo in the whole place on the mantle in the living room. I placed the hat and photo together in my inner jacket pocket and left the apartment, keeping close to the walls once again as I walked through the dark building, hugging my jacket. This day had been a cluster fuck of emotions and if I had one more scare I would just have to crawl in a corner and find my happy place.

By the time I walked out of that place the sun was sinking into the horizon. Night was falling quick and I had wanted to properly secure a room for all of us in the hospital.

I saw movement out of the corner of my eye and pulled my gun from my side as I looked around me. I didn't see anyone and I decided to look around the perimeter of my truck. As I came back around the front I gave a startled yelp at the man standing against the driver's side door that hadn't been there moments before.

He looked at me with an amused expression although his eyes looked as tired as I'm sure mine did. He raised a half empty bottle of Jack in salute before taking a big swig.

"Sir, would you mind stepping away from the car?" I spoke in what I called my 'voice of authority'.

He raised an eyebrow and smirked before lurching away from the door.

"Thank you" I mumbled.

He stood aside and watched me climb into the truck cab. He finally spoke as I reached for the door handle.

"Where ya goin'?" he slurred, swaying slightly.

I knew I was brought here to help, and I would offer protection to anyone who needed it, but I was not about to bring an inebriated stranger into our group of mostly woman.

"Do you need help?" I asked.

He waved his hand in dismissal as he turned to walk away.

"Do you have somewhere safe to stay? You shouldn't be wandering around like you are. It's getting late. Can I drive you somewhere?" At this point I was wondering how fast I would have to drive to make it back before dark.

"I'm just round the corner. CDC." he called out without even turning around.

I watched him walk away in my rear view mirror and when he was out of sight I started the car and headed back.

I reached the hospital as the last light was disappearing. I raced inside through the pitch black hallways and stairwells to the room where I had left everyone.

Relief was apparent on everyone's face when I turned the corner. Carlisle had taken a defensive stance in the doorway with a metal poll from an IV stand and Bella's face peered around from behind him on one side and Esme's on the other. I realized then that a large man in combat boots running through a silent hospital must have sounded like a herd of elephants to them.

They moved back into the room and the weak bathroom light illuminated the four gurneys they must have brought in. I walked over to the bedside table where I put the picture frame and turned it to face Rosalie.

I moved closer then and placed the hat in her opened hand.

I noticed the large armoire holding the TV and suggested we use it to barricade the door when I noticed the flimsy lock they had on the door.

Carlisle and I dragged it over and when I was happy with its placement, I sat down heavily on the nearest bed.

As everyone got situated, I relayed my encounter and wondered aloud if we should follow up.

"I'm really not sure how to take him. He was obviously drunk and said he was headed to the CDC."

"What did he look like?" Carlisle asked, raising up on his elbows in interest.

I thought hard and listed several traits I had noticed.

"Um...tall, green eyes, young-ish....couldn't have been more than 30...."

"Reddish hair?" Carlisle asked, hope evident in his voice.

"Yeah," I said, "you know him?"

"I can't be sure" he began, "but it may be Dr. Masen."

He gave a pointed look in Bella's direction before he continued.

"_Emmett_ and _I_ will go tomorrow to see if it's him and even if it's not we need to find out if this man needs anything. Bella, I would appreciate it if you and Esme would stay here with our patient. Rosalie needs to be completely ready to travel within the next day."

"You've got, what, maybe one more day with the generator working?" I asked.

Carlisle nodded.

"Only because we closed off and shut down the rest of the hospital. If it makes it through tomorrow night we'll be lucky."

"In that case" I said, stretching and yawning loudly, "let's get some sleep. If that guy is in anywhere near the shape as he was in tonight we've got a long day ahead of us."

I heard Bella and Esme whispering in the darkness and gave a loud sigh in fake frustration.

"Good night ladies" I said in a sing-song voice.

I heard giggling and knew what was coming.

"Good night Emmett" they sang back in unison.

I remained sitting with my head up against the wall and for the first time in almost 48 hours I closed my eyes and slept.

**_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________**

**EPOV**

4 days ago

_I walked up to the podium and looked out over the crowd of reporters. Continuous camera flashes and the clicking sound of shutters bombarded me as I stood there. _

_I had written a speech, but at this moment anything that I had to say or any reassurances I would try to give were pointless. _

_I was a scientist. I spent my days holed up in a lab. I was not prepared for public addresses but in the mad race to inform the public of our massive deception, I was the only one that hadn't died or run to their vacation home in an exotic locale. _

_I gripped the podium to steel myself against the sudden urge to flee. I looked over the faces in front of me, mouths and noses covered by masks that did little to offer protection. Most of the reporters in the room were coughing That disgustingly wet cough that accompanied this virus and heralded death. _

_Slowly, I reached up and removed my own mask, eliciting gasps from the crowd around me. I had to tell them there was no hope. I had to face their anger and frustration at being handed a life sentence. And I had to do it without any obstruction. _

_They could accuse and yell and cry all they wanted. Their anger was nothing compared to the anger I held for myself. I took every death as personally as if I had been the one to actually cause it. I was full of self-hatred at failing a job I had been given and in doing so, 40% of the world or more would die at my hand. I was the worst kind of killer. _

_I led my prey in with a promise to do all I could. I kept them imprisoned in my jail of eternal optimism. And then I watched as they died. _

_The room had blurred. Faces swam before me and I cleared my throat to dispel the lump so I could speak with confidence and authority. _

_Maybe I shouldn't have cleared my throat I thought, wryly. _

_Maybe this news would make them feel better coming from someone who was sick also. I coughed but mine was dry and I wondered if anyone would notice the difference. _

_"Thank you all for coming today" I began, "Recently, the Center for Disease Control and the World Health Organization have been working tirelessly to develop a vaccine to help us control and prevent the spread of __the__ H9N2 Flu. Despite our best efforts and recent reassurances, there have been no advances in our research. We are in the same place we were three months ago when the first case__s__ and subsequent de__aths were__ reported. The chances for survival after contracting the virus and showing symptoms are non-existent." _

_I stopped and watched the crowd. _

_There was no sound, it was almost as if they were holding their breath, waiting for a 'but'. As soon as the realization hit, the room erupted in angry shouts and questions. _

_I raised my hands in an act of defeat and pleaded with my eyes for the reporters and millions watching on TV to understand to forgive me for failing them. I was the only one left that I knew of. Our team had worked day and night and with increased determination as our own colleagues began dying. This task had been too large for the hundreds who had begun working on it when it had just been a case in a tiny town thousands of miles away. It became a pandemic within weeks and now here I stood, alone. _

_"There is nothing more to say" I whispered before turning and walking calmly out of the room. _

_When I reached the door leading outside I raced to my car in a paranoid frenzy. I knew what w__as coming. It w__as only a matter of time in situations of severe crisis. _

_I only hoped the backlash of my press conference would wait until after the President spoke. _

_I needed time to return to my home and lock myself in. I cringed internally at my cowardice while I vowed to myself that as soon as I could, I would return to the lab. I told myself that taking this 'break' would clear my head and allow me to find that missing clue to win the battle against this microscopic demon. _

I spent the next several days watching the riots out my window that overlooked the Atlanta skyline.

I spent the following day pacing, listening to my remaining neighbors gather what they could and leave their homes. I couldn't imagine what they were thinking of doing once they left. Did they think that there was somewhere immune to all of this? Did they not realize that the whole world had gone to hell? Did they know something I didn't? I scoffed at that thought and opened the fridge to grab a beer.

The next day I sat before my blank notebook and ran through every trial, every encouraging development and every setback. I willed anything to occur to me. A missed formula, any small change that hadn't already been made.

In a last ditch effort I even prayed.

When I stood once again at the window, I watched as an angry mob flipped a car and somehow lit it on fire and then proceeded to jump around celebrating. I felt the explosion rumble from my feet to my ears as it shook my building and rattled my windows.

'_Way to go!'_ I mentally cheered, '_you've really made a difference_.'

Sometime in the early morning hours a deathly silence descended on the city. The rioting was over.

I looked around my apartment at the skewed pictures, food containers and empty beer bottles and suddenly felt extremely tired.

I could count the hours of sleep I'd had over the past several days on one hand. I laid down and stared at the ceiling, begging my mind to stop reeling long enough to grant me a few hours of solitude.

After two hours of fruitless wishing, I grabbed my unopened bottle of Jack, ripped it open and drank straight from the bottle. I closed my eyes to revel in the warmth spreading through my limbs and finally fell asleep.

I jerked awake and looked around for what had caused the deep rumbling sound. The sound was familiar, I had heard it earlier and chose to ignore it, and fell back to sleep. I stumbled to my window and looked straight down to the street and saw the green and brown roof of some type of military vehicle.

I pulled on a shirt, grabbed my Jack and wobbled out of my apartment. I pushed the call button for the elevator and waited for several minutes before I figured out that the power was out. I groaned when I realized I was going to have to walk down several flights of stairs in a windowless stairwell.

I tripped my way down to the lobby and sauntered across the street towards what turned out to be a Hummer. I stood dumbly beside it and looked around for it's driver. I noticed someone leaving the building behind the Hummer and turned to see a very large man wearing fatigues and carrying a gun.

He must have sensed my presence because he slowly turned in a circle and looked over his shoulder several times. In my half drunken state I found this very funny and moved out of sight behind his truck while he came around the front. I watched him through the windows as he looked around, still not noticing me. I made it all the way around and leaned casually against the driver's side door. I tried to put on a pleasant expression so I wouldn't seem threatening. The last thing I wanted do was piss off an armed man.

I tried not to laugh when he rounded the corner and damn near screamed when he noticed me. I stifled my immaturity and desire to laugh out loud at his reaction and instead I raised my Jack in salute and apology and took a large pull.

He asked me to move and I graciously stepped aside. He climbed into his cab and before he could leave I asked where he was going. He was still for several moments and I turned to walk away when he asked me if I needed any help. I waved him off, knowing the help I needed was beyond even me. I continued to walk away toward.... _Where WAS I going? _and noticed he was still calling after me. He seemed to be in a hurry, like he needed to be somewhere else. I dismissed him again and pointed forward, telling him I was going to the CDC.

I heard the truck start and pull away behind me as I continued to walk towards my office and lab.

I had no idea what I was going to do when I got there as my mind was in a drunken fog but the soldier was right, the last place I needed to be in my current state was wandering around at night.

_The dark....fuck me. Did the office have a generator and how did it turn on_? By the time I reached the building it was pitch black inside. I made my way inside and stopped at the main security desk. I felt around under the desk and in several large drawers before finding a Maglight. I sighed in relief and after turning it on, made my way upstairs, still not knowing why I was even here again.

I was pleasantly surprised that the laboratory seemed to be untouched after the wave of violence that had ensued after the President's and my announcements. I sat on a lone stool in the middle of the lab and with the aid of my flashlight looked around. Everything was exactly as it had been left days earlier. I imagined that in a few hours my colleagues would begin showing up. We would trade pleasantries and playful banter over television shows and sports teams. Eventually everyone would be involved in their various tasks and a tense silence would settle around the room, broken occasionally with the whirring of a machine or quiet conference between scientists.

I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn't hear the rhythmic pounding of several sets of feet coming towards the lab. I remembered too late to turn off my flashlight as I heard strange voices calling to each other shouts of "In here!"

I turned slowly and once I facing the doorway, I raised my hands in surrender which seemed to be a trend with me lately. I hoped to hell my eyes did not betray me and show the absolute terror I felt as I counted three very large men stepping through the doorway, each carrying a makeshift weapon.

Their eyes shone like onyx in the dim lights of our various flashlights and I could have sworn I heard a growl.

My hands were still raised and I tried to stand and let them know I would gladly get out of their way before I was pushed back down so hard my teeth rattled. It probably would have hurt if I hadn't been drunk.

"You're that guy on the news, ain't ya?" sneered the man in front of me.

He didn't wait for my answer before he pulled his fist back and slammed into my face like a hammer. I saw stars and felt the thick warm rush of blood spew from my nose before I tasted it on my lips. I turned slowly back to face him. I felt my eyes water and I let the blood drip down my chin and onto my shirt.

I sat calmly looking at him, mentally asking him to do his worst. I deserved whatever punishment they felt needed to be dealt.

The next blow hit me in the stomach and I doubled over before falling to the floor in a heap. I was promptly picked up off the floor and held as blow after blow landed on my ribs, my face and my stomach. I felt the vice like grip slacken and with one last push I fell to the floor coughing and gagging. The room erupted into various sounds of shattering glass and heavy equipment falling. When the three men had dispelled their anger through destruction, they began to leave the room one by one. As the last one reached the doorway he turned around and walked swiftly back towards me. I saw his foot raise in my peripheral vision and briefly wondered how bad this would hurt before he dealt a swift kick to the side of my head and I plunged into blissful blackness.

**_________________________________________________________________________________________________________**

**A/N: Thank you to my support group, The Reviewers. Thank You, Bublichka, for editing my every word and staying up late with me to make sure this chapter was perfect. **

**Thank you to all my readers. I know you're out there....come join The Reviewers!! It's free and it makes everybody happy ;)**


	4. Chapter 4

**DISCLAIMER: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight**

**Chapter 4 **

**BPOV**

Carlisle leaned down and spoke quietly with Rosalie the next morning. Occasionally she would nod and I even thought I saw a faint smile play on her lips before disappearing again. We all looked away quickly and assumed the 'look busy' stance as Carlisle turned from Rosalie to address us all.

"I know last night I said Emmett and I would go alone to try and find Dr. Masen, but I'm not entirely comfortable with that idea. I'm not sure if any of you are aware but I thought I may have heard some commotion outside and although I do feel there is safety in numbers, it would be against my better judgement to leave three woman alone in this environment."

"Damn, Carlisle," I swore under me breath. "This white knight syndrome is getting old."

I complained, but I was secretly happy to not be left behind in an empty hospital with nothing to do. I didn't want _this_ kind of excitement exactly, but I was missing the adrenaline spikes of my position as an ER nurse and I was getting antsy.

Carlisle chose to ignore my juvenile jab and smiled kindly in Rosalie's direction before continuing.

"Rosalie feels up to traveling. We will go as a group to gather what we can; namely food and water. The Hummer only has so much room after we take into account the people traveling and what we've already gathered. Emmett believes we have enough fuel to get us a good ways away from the city. He also has a CB radio that I hope will help us locate others. Are there any questions?"

We all looked between each other feeling confident with Carlisle and Emmett's plan.

"OK! Let's load up." boomed Emmett.

I clicked my heels and gave a mock salute as we turned and filed out the door.

We walked quickly through the corridors and stairwells down to the first floor. The sight that greeted us stopped us all in our tracks. I heard Esme gasp and I looked over to see her gripping Carlisle's arm. Emmett stepped forward, instinctively providing himself as a shield to us all. The destruction was mind numbing. Shattered glass covered the floor. Instruments, medical supplies and small machinery were strewn about.

"What did they think they would find?" asked Esme.

My eyes widened as I remembered the cart stored in the pantry. I began running towards the cafeteria, skidding on glass and tripping on cords. Emmett was close behind me as I rounded the corner.

Everything in the cafeteria had been overturned. We made our way towards the pantry. The door was ajar and even though I knew deep down it was all gone, I crossed my fingers and held my breath while Emmett opened the door. My breath left me in a gust.

Cans lay broken and oozing on the floor. Dry goods, like pasta and beans, had been opened and thrown about. Every package of food had been destroyed. They hadn't taken anything. They had left it useless for anyone else.

I was suddenly filled with an intense and almost blinding rage. I screamed, swore, and pounded the heavy metal door of the refrigerator as I released every ounce of frustration, fear and resentment that had been pooling inside of me for so long. Emmett gave me my space and intervened only when he noticed my fists turning red from the constant force exerted on them. He swooped in behind me and wrapped his arms around my torso pinning my arms to my sides. I began kicking my legs defiantly towards the fridge needing something to know my wrath.

Emmett turned me from the fridge and began shushing me like a small child as I panted and huffed in his arms.

"Are you finished?" he asked and his tone was firm. I nodded my head and he slowly lowered me and released may arms.

I ran my hands over my head attempting to smooth back the hair that had escaped my ponytail holder. I gave one last huff and turned to head back towards the others.

Emmett walked beside me shaking his head and chuckling.

"Remind me never to come between you and your food."

I stopped and turned toward him, incredulous.

"We have five, possibly six, people to care for. Excuse me for getting a little pissed that all our food is gone!" I yelled. "We have no idea what's left out there! Our task for today just became that much harder. Despite our training, we are all blatantly unprepared."

He turned to me and placed his hands on my shoulders. He looked into my eyes, a serious expression on his face.

"We are all smart people." He assured me. "I know there are still good people out there. Don't let the acts of a few dictate the good of many." He gently squeezed my shoulders and walked away, leaving me to follow.

I wasn't sure who had heard or how I looked when Emmett and I returned but no one said anything.

"It's all gone." I said. "I think we should go to the CDC first. Whoever did this was retaliating."

"You may be right, Bella." Carlisle agreed. "There are several stores in that area we can search once we find Dr. Masen."

Emmett checked over the Hummer before he allowed any of us to get in. We noticed several large dents and what looked like a splintered baseball bat laying on the ground. Someone had tried to damage the Hummer but lacked the strength and resources. I was at least thankful for _that_ small favor.

We rode in silence, each of us keeping a wary eye on the sights around us. We had all seen it and I was saddened by the shock I no longer felt when I looked over the destruction.

Carlisle was out of the door and calling out "Edward" as he ran toward the building before the car had even stopped. It took me a second to register the devastation before I also jumped from the back and followed after Carlisle. Every window in the building had been broken. Glass littered the walkway and lobby. We ran down hallway after hallway looking in every office, bathroom and lab, shouting Edward's name at the top of our voices.

Carlisle stopped so quickly that I ran into his back.

"Did you hear that?" He asked.

I shook my head but looked around, straining my ears for any sound. Finally, I heard the muffled sound of movement and a low moan.

"Carlisle!" I shouted, pointing towards a room to our left. Carlisle jumped into action, skidding on glass while kneeling down and checking for a pulse.

I looked at the still form lying before me and took in his bruised and bloody appearance.

"Is it him? Is he OK?" I asked.

"Yes, it's Edward." he answered solemnly. "Go get Emmett." he ordered before taking off his backpack and turning back to Edward. I stayed where I was, silently challenging his authority and motive. Carlisle looked over his shoulder and noticed I was still standing there. His normally warm gaze had turned into a cold stare.

"I'm going to need his help to carry Edward." he said through clenched teeth, obviously angry at my hesitance. "GO!" he barked.

I stayed with Rosalie and Esme as Emmett ran into the building to help Carlisle. Esme noticed my mood and nudged my shoulder.

"You're a strong woman." she began, "You're down here to protect me and Rose. Let them get the hernia." I rolled my eyes and smiled at her.

Emmett and Carlisle appeared sometime later with Edward staggering between them. Carlisle tossed me his bag and instructed me to climb in the back of the Hummer and guided Edward over the lowered seats toward me.

"You can clean him up while we drive." he said brusquely. I bristled at his tone but held it back, knowing that I had questioned him and wasted time with my prideful defiance.

"I'm sorry." I said as I looked up at him through my eyelashes.

"You can't always be the hero Bella." He said quietly before closing the door and walking away.

I turned my attention to my patient and mentally listed the supplies I would need. I turned to rummage through Carlisle's bag when I heard Edward shift and felt the weight of his body as he slowly leaned against my leg and placed his head in my lap. I opened a bottle of water and wet a large piece of gauze and began to gently wiped the injured areas of his face. As I cleaned, I assessed his injuries.

He had a small but deep gash over his left eye that could've used stitches.

Despite the copious amount of dried blood smeared along his face and shirt his injuries seemed minor. If Carlisle had noticed any sign of internal injuries he would have never moved him. He was very lucky. It could have been so much worse.

I was left in the back of the truck with Edward as the rest of our group entered store after store in search of food and water. Carlisle, Rosalie, and Esme would go inside while Emmett stood guard between the truck and the store entrance, gun in hand, ready to jump in and defend either group.

By late afternoon, the space surrounding Edward and me had been filled with peanut butter, rice, canned vegetables, and bottled water. Rosalie and Esme had even thought to rummage through the back storeroom of one store and found some oranges and apples and a large untouched box of protein bars.

"Nice!" Emmett praised, eyeing the fresh fruit and bars.

The Hummer roared to life and I caught a whiff of the unmistakable smell of chocolate. My stomach growled loudly and I might have drooled. Before I could say anything, a snickers bar sailed over the last seat and landed to my right. I ripped it open and took a large bite, knowing it was a gift from Carlisle. His gesture let me know I was forgiven for my earlier defiance.

We continued through the city and decided to stop once more before leaving the northern suburbs. Emmett exited the highway and pulled to a stop in a shopping center with various stores and a Wal-Mart. I slid out from under Edward's unconscious weight and crawled towards the door. I stretched and jumped in place trying to dispel the energy I had built up from sitting for so long in the car.

Carlisle decided to stay with Edward this time and Emmett offered Carlisle a gun he had pulled from underneath his seat before the rest of us made our way into the superstore. I looked back and laughed at the sight of Carlisle standing there gingerly holding a large firearm.

"Emmett," I laughed, "that may not have been a good idea. If he's forced to use that I hope he doesn't shoot himself."

"I heard that Bella." Carlisle shouted.

We reached the doorway of the Wal-mart and stood there looking in. I was hesitant but knew we had to venture in if we were to find any more supplies. I decided then that it would be more efficient to split up.

"Esme and I will try and find some clothes. What sizes do you wear?" I asked Rosalie and Emmett.

"Medium tops and size 6 tall jeans." Rosalie said quietly.

"Extra. Large. Baby." Emmett said, pounding his chest as we all rolled our eyes.

We took off in our separate directions with the promise to meet back in 15 minutes at the front of the store.

Esme and I picked through piles of torn clothing and stepped around overturned displays as we made our way through the store. We chose clothing based on condition rather than looks or size. It would take us too long to sort through the mess we encountered. For now we decided to grab what we could and organize it later.

We all got back a few minutes earlier than planned. None of us wanted to linger for too long in the silent cavernous space. To see a place like Wal-Mart empty and quiet was beyond creepy. We unloaded our finds into a shopping cart and Emmett pushed it towards the truck. Despite having to search through the ransacked store, we were able to find several things to boost our supplies. Emmett was able to find a loaf of bread not covered in mold and Rosalie had even grabbed a box of plastic cutlery and paper towels. Rosalie was quickly becoming a saint in my eyes. We crammed everything into the back, careful not to bury Edward, and attempted to leave enough room for me to squeeze back into my spot. With the last bit of light we stood together feasting on peanut butter sandwiches and watching Emmett devour a can of Chef Boyardee cold. When the sky began to turn from light purple to dark blue we reluctantly climbed into our positions, now cramped due to our expanded supplies.

I attempted to maneuver around our cargo but discovered the only way I would be able to sit was to have Edward's head back in my lap. I cradled his head in my hands and slid between him and the bench. I crossed my legs beneath me and delicately placed his bruised head back down. I tried to wipe his hair away from his forehead, but it fell forward again in bloody tangled mess.

The Hummer thundered into the coming night, carrying us farther away from the city. We had no idea where we would be going. Carlisle fiddled with the CB as Emmett drove. I caught snippets of small conversations around me, but I sat so far in the back it was hard to follow along or join in, and the rocking motion and Edward's rhythmic snores eventually lulled me to sleep.

I awoke sometime later with my head leaning against a case of bottled water. I groaned at the stiffness in my neck and back and felt the familiar pins and needles associated with sleeping extremities. I looked down at the sleeping form in my lap and noticed my hand woven into his hair. I moved my hand quickly, feeling guilty at my unconscious intimacy. It was very dark and I wondered what time it was.

I suddenly noticed we had stopped moving and looked around in a panic trying to locate the faces of my group. Rosalie and Esme were leaning forward listening to an excited Carlisle and Emmett pour over a worn map.

"What's going on?" I whispered toward Esme and Rosalie. Rosalie turned toward me, her face alive for the first time since I'd known her with hope.

"Carlisle was searching the CB channels for something and he came across a couple of survivalists in the mountains. They've got like, a walled campground with cabins. They told us where they were and Carlisle and Emmett are working out the best route. They think were close."

I looked out the back window and noticed we had pulled off at a gas station. The idea of a bathroom suddenly took precedence in my mind.

"Excuse me... Carlisle... Emmett? Would it be OK if I got out to go to the bathroom?" I called towards the front.

They talked quietly between them and decided we could all get out to stretch or use the bathroom as long as we didn't take longer that 10 minutes since they were wary of being stationary for too long. Emmett mumbled something about sitting ducks as everyone filed out of the vehicle.

I gently nudged the sleeping stranger to try get him to move. Instead of moving away from me he buried his face deeper and I giggled at the awkwardness of the situation.

"Edward!" I whispered sharply as I nudged him again.

"Please, I gotta pee." I whined, drawing out every word.

I nudged him one last time before gently grabbing his head and lifting it off my lap.

My touch, or the sudden movement, caused his whole body to stiffen and jerk away from me. His eyes bore into mine, dark and almost feral. In a frightened response, I scrambled over the back seat and fell out of the side door onto the ground.

I opened my eyes and looked up into the worried eyes of Carlisle and Rosalie.

"Edward's awake." I deadpanned before getting up and running toward the bathrooms.

**A/N: This has been a HUGE week for me and my little fic. The Colony was rec'd on The Fictionators!!! I'm so incredibly honored.**

**Kassiah from The Fictionators has also created a thread for The Colony over on Twilighted. I will put a link on my profile for anyone interested in coming over to say 'hey!' I would love to see ya'll ;)**

**As always, Bublichka is a Saint. She holds my hand and kicks my ass repeatedly when needed and I thoroughly enjoy it. **

**And finally:**

**What food would you try to find if you were set loose in an empty Wal-Mart?**


	5. Chapter 5

**DISCLAIMER: I am not Stephenie Meyer. **

**A/N: A little mid week treat for ya'll. Enjoy. **

**Chapter 5  
** **JPOV**

I wandered up the gravel path that led from our land to the Smith's home. I had traveled this path all my life but for the first time I was in no hurry to reach my intended destination. Coming onto their property I looked to my left and took in the site of the freshly dug graves. I had helped James dig those graves that would forever enclose his family. Keeping them forever on the land they loved. I looked around and blinked rapidly against the burn of unshed tears.

James was brought up on this small farm and reveled in the crops and the family he had raised. His children thrived in the fresh air and ran barefoot through the creek, catching frogs and snakes. Victoria treasured her home and family and helped take care of those in her community.

We all lived in a small town surrounded by small farms. We spent our time savoring each other and our way of life, delighting in watching the outside world bash its own head in. 

A few months ago, talk of crop prices turned to talk of this virus. It was common knowledge around here that despite the government's reassurance that all was well, things were beginning to spiral out of control.

People outside of our community called us flag waving, gun toting Survivalists. But we read the papers and watched the news. We had our theories of what was to come and took satisfaction in our own resourcefulness and ability to be self sufficient.

Ed, the Pharmacist, had ordered several boxes of face masks and families removed their children from school to keep them close to home. The town square, once a hotbed of activity, was desolate. But in the end even we were not immune to the far reaching virus and the devastation it brought.

The first case of the flu hit our small town three weeks ago and despite everyone's precautions, it began to spread like wildfire. The children were the first to begin showing symptoms and they would eventually succumb before their mothers. The mothers went without food or sleep to care for their children at their bedsides and were usually the next victim. I watched too many fathers bury their children not to feel their pain, despite not having children of my own. As death began to consume our small town, panic and speculation took over the conversation.

I came upon James' porch and knocked on the screen door. I waited out of habit to hear the clambering of several sets of small feet racing to the door before I remembered they were all gone. The quiet of the house was overwhelming and painfully sad.

I pulled open the door, removing my hat and wiping my boots on the mat before making my way into the house. I called out for James and held my breath listening for his answering call. Silence.

I walked further into the house through the front hall before noticing James sprawled out across the couch. His hand was hanging down towards an empty bottle of his favorite moonshine. I sighed and reached down to pick up the bottle, inadvertently brushing my arm against the hand hanging down. I stopped short of my task when I noticed the cold temperature and rigid fingers.

The noise that left my throat reverberated through the walls and brought me down to my knees.

I knelt there and prayed. I prayed for his soul and I prayed for mine. Fear tightened in my chest and burned in my stomach. I felt my stomach shift and got up, running the few steps into the nearest bathroom and vomited until there was nothing left. I returned to his body and wrapped it in a sheet pulled from the linen closet in the hall.

I carried my friend and brother to his family's burial plot and spent the next couple hours digging his final resting place. As gently as possible, I placed James into his grave and covered his body in the rich soil. He was finally back where he belonged, body and soul, next to his family. He was the last of his family and this town to lose his life.

I sat with him until the sun began to set and cast a red glow over the path leading home. I squinted into the fading light and realized that as darkness descended, Alice and I would be alone. Our small town had always provided us with a sense of security. The people in our lives were willing to protect those around them at all costs. We were the last of those who stayed behind that were alive ,as far as I knew, and I suddenly felt the need to get home as soon as possible.

Home.

Alice.

I began running, chanting Alice's name. By the time I arrived home I was yelling of her, my sudden panic making it imperative to be with her. She met me at the door and I sank to my knees as I wrapped my arms around her legs and sobbed. She lowered herself to kneel in front of me and gently laid my head in her lap and ran her fingers through my hair and let me cry. I cried out of fear, out of loss and frustration. We had lived our lives protected, removed and able to sustain ourselves until a small virus came and taught us how fragile we still are.

That night, while we ate dinner, we listened in silence to the radio. Reports of rioting in major cities around the world were coming in despite the President's recent address to maintain peace.

I walked over to the gun cabinet and pulled out several guns and cleaning supplies and began the methodical process of cleaning and loading while Alice cleared up dinner.

Alice brought my coffee over and sat with me as I cleaned and worked through my thoughts. She knew what I would say but waited until I was ready.

"We need to get somewhere safe." I started, "People are dying, riots and looting are destroying the cities. Electricity will go out, water will become scarce, and cities will eventually crumble. We'll pack up the old Land Rover with as much as we can."

"Are we going to Woodmont? What if we find others?" Alice asked.

"Yes, we're going to Woodmont. If we see anyone we'll stop to help them but I will not go out of my way and put us in any danger." I replied reassuring her

I looked up and saw Alice nod slowly in agreement, her eyes fixed on her hands clasped in front of her on the table. She had already lost and seen too much. Her parents were already gone by the time the illness came to our town. We had buried her sister, the last of her family, three days ago. Alice had left to stay in town with her sister when she fell ill. She spent her days and nights offering comfort and attempting to alleviate any distress her sister may have felt as she lay dying. She had returned home to me, her normal cheerful demeanor gone. She had also lost several of her young students when they left town and was there to witness the burials of the ones who stayed. It seemed as though the light she held within her and willingly shared with everyone, had gone out. She didn't mope or walk in perpetual sadness but she was changed regardless. The news of the deaths in James' family had been the final straw. Her eternal optimism had been challenged and for once she was unsure of the future and I could tell it scared her.

I did my best to protect her from the realities we now faced but I didn't want her to be unprepared. I spoke quietly of the sights we may encounter, willing to answer any questions she may have.

She trusted me implicitly and I took great pride in being her protector.

We woke the next morning just as the sun was coming up. I loaded the car with my guns and ammunition, kerosene and kerosene lamps. I also gathered most of our camping gear; waterproof matches, MRE's, and water purifying tablets, placing them in a large bin. I loaded it into the trunk while Alice gathered blankets, clothes, and cast iron pots and pans to place alongside our growing stash. I lugged several large containers of fuel to the top rack of the car and strapped them down with several thick bungee cords. I helped Alice load our two suitcases filled with clothes and her personal womanly items last. We stood together looking at what was once our home. It was just a house now. Our home would be anywhere we were together.

I walked Alice around to her side of the car, gave her my hand to help her climb up and leaned over to kiss her gently before closing the door. I smiled as I heard her push the door lock down.

We rode in tense yet comfortable silence, watching the fields and forests fade away as we entered the suburban area on the outskirts of Atlanta. Cars littered the sides of the highway and soon smoke from fires burning in the city began to make the sky hazy despite the strong spring sunshine. I made the decision to go around the city on I-285. It would take longer, but I had made a promise to keep us out of danger and I intended to keep it. Alice turned on the CB radio built into the dash and pushed buttons slowly scanning the channels for any activity. We didn't hear anything other than quiet static but she continued until we were well beyond the city limits and back on the 75N, heading towards the retreat in the mountains.

The sun was setting when we finally broke through the dense foliage that surrounded the carved wooden gate announcing our arrival at Woodmont. I sighed and looked over at Alice as I remembered the last time we had come here. Every year we spent a week with other families who lived our way of life. We came together in fun and fellowship and had an unspoken agreement that if the time came, Woodmont would be the place we'd come to be safe. Although we were always prepared, I never thought I would see the day when I would pull up here with my family for more than a vacation. I wondered if anyone else would join us and hoped, for reasons other than having company, that they would.

I exited the car, rifle in hand, and opened the gate. We drove slowly through the grounds and made our way to the area that housed the dining hall and several small cabins clustered together. Although the camp in general covered 170 acres, the living area was small, most of the land taken up by the lake, stables and forest. It made this a perfect setting to offer protection and a sense of peace without feeling closed in.

"Since it's getting dark we'll take just what we need for tonight and keep the rest locked up until morning." I said, opening the car door for Alice.

"I'll go air out the cabin." Alice replied, "Make sure you grab some firewood and a quilt from the back. It'll get cold tonight."

I grabbed a few blankets and brought them in before I ran back out to gather some branches and a few logs to start a fire. I mentally reminded myself to turn off the headlights we had been using to light up the cabin until we got settled. As I reached into the cab to turn the switch the steady static of the CB crackled to life and I heard a man's voice.

"This is Emmett McCarty, National Guard. If anyone can hear me, please respond."

My breath caught and my eyes widened in astonishment. I fumbled with the mic in my haste to return contact but managed to grab it, hold down the button and respond.

"Emmett McCarty, this is Jasper Whitlock. What is your location?"

**A/N: There you have it.** **I hope you liked your treat!! Let me know.....*wink, wink***

**And as alwaysTHANK YOU to my Beta and Pimp Bublichka who tells me to STFU as needed ;) I wouldn't be here without you. **

**I can't forget my number one fan, RedVelvetHeaven. Your reviews are like pictures of Rob. They make me squee and feel all warm inside.**

**Don't forget my Twilighted thread!! Come say HI!!!!**


	6. Chapter 6

**DISCLAIMER: Twilight is not mine.**

**Chapter 6 **

**BPOV**

I sat in the dark bathroom, trying to catch my breath. The look in Edward's eyes had been frightening to say the least. I couldn't imagine I had touched him hard enough to elicit a response like that.

I reassembled myself with the aid of the small penlight I had discovered in my pocket and made my way towards the sinks. The water came out in a small trickle and I washed my hands the best I could before splashing the cold water on my heated face.

Even with the little light I had, I stumbled through the dark restroom, feeling along the walls for the door. Finally finding it, I wrenched it open and took several deep breaths. The headlights illuminated the scene before me and I saw everyone standing together around the Hummer where Carlisle and Edward seemed to be in a heated discussion. Edward scrubbed his hands over his face several times and raked both hands through his hair.

_Was he that mad that I had touched him?_ I thought. He was shouting now and Carlisle was looking at him, patiently waiting until he got it out of his system. Carlisle must have stopped arguing with him when he noticed he was getting nowhere.

Edward finally threw his hands up in the air and proceeded towards the bathroom, gesturing wildly and muttering under his breath. I stood watching him stomp towards me when I realized I was in his way and needed to move...fast.

I side stepped just in time and he barely grazed me as he stormed past.

"Please tell me that is not because I touched him." I stated when I reached the group. Everyone was staring where Edward had been standing.

"Why'd you touch him?" Rosalie asked quizzically.

"His head was in my lap," I said, not realizing how that sounded until Rosalie and Emmett both quirked an eyebrow in my direction. "Ugh, Lord." I drawled rolling my eyes. "He had passed out and he laid his head in my lap. Save me Carlisle!" I begged.

Carlisle and Esme both looked amused at the turn of conversation.

Carlisle shook his head and said, "Edward is not happy with us. He wants to go back to Atlanta."

"Doesn't he remember being beaten unconscious and the lab being destroyed?" I asked.

"He hasn't said so, but I know Edward and I believe that he feels it's his fault we are all here like this."

He finished the last part in a rush as we all noticed Edward approaching. He seemed much calmer but we were wary of his current attitude.

Edward approached us again. He was looking down at his feet, a sheepish look on his face.

"I'm sorry." he muttered.

"Yes...well..." Carlisle stammered seeming surprised at his apology. "Um...Edward you know Esme, but this is Emmett, Rosalie and Bella." he said pointing us out in turn.

I looked up as I was introduced to give a smile and small wave, trying to show him I wouldn't hold his hostile reaction against him. Our eyes met and he gave a slight nod in acknowledgment.

Emmett began ushering us towards the car since our ten minutes had turned into fifteen and he was no longer comfortable standing around. The roads and surrounding area were completely deserted. I don't even think I heard animals scrambling in the woods behind the gas station. But we obediently traipsed towards the truck and settled into our previous seats

After starting the vehicle, Emmett grabbed the CB mic and spoke into it.

"Jasper, we are back on the road. ETA is 9 pm. Over."

"Copy that" crackled forth and we were once again on our way, but this time we had a planned destination.

The car was filled with a pressing silence. I reached over and began picking at the label from a can of peas, trying to keep myself occupied and distracted from the need I felt to engage Edward in idle conversation.

Edward cleared his throat beside me.

"Um, Bella?" he asked hesitantly.

I turned quickly and looked at him. He seemed nervous and I couldn't help myself from smiling at his obvious discomfort.

"Yes?" I asked expectantly.

He raised his hand and began copying my previous activity of label peeling. I sat with my legs pulled up and rested my chin on my knees patiently waiting for him to continue.

"I, uh...I wanted to apologize for earlier when I...um...freaked out on you. I didn't mean to scare you."

"That's OK. I mean, I would've freaked out too if I had woken up to some woman holding my face. I was just afraid I had hurt you." I rambled.

He shook his head, a smirk playing along his mouth.

"You didn't hurt me." He finally whispered before he turned back to his label destruction.

"What were you doing there? At the CDC?" I asked genuinely curious.

The smirk disappeared and was replaced with a deep frown.

"I was part of the team working on the H9N2 virus. We were in charge of developing the vaccine...of finding a cure." His voice was monotone but his eyebrows were furrowed, as if he was in a great deal of pain.

Nurse Bella noticed this change and sprung into action.

"Are you OK?" I asked wondering if Carlisle had packed any type of pain reliever.

"Unfortunately." He muttered with a dark chuckle.

"I meant are you in any pain..." I clarified in a condescending tone.

He finally looked up and I almost gasped at the travail painted across his face. His face turned dark once again and he fixed a cold stare at me.

"I'm FINE." he spat.

I looked away once again, uncomfortable with his intensity and scooted as far away from him as possible in our cramped quarters. I didn't even care if he noticed.

I closed my eyes and leaned against the bottled water, feigning sleep. I silently wished we would arrive where ever it was we were going soon.

It wasn't long after that I felt the Hummer slow and then stop. I sat up and tried to look out the windows blocked by our stash. Seeing nothing I turned and raised up on my knees to look towards the front and out the windshield. The headlights illuminated a narrow dirt road surrounded by thick trees and bushes.

"Everyone sit tight." Emmett warned before gunning the engine to make it through the thick underbrush.

The car lurched on the uneven terrain and I was thrown into Edward's lap. His body immediately tensed underneath me and I struggled against gravity and the rocking of the truck to lift myself from his lap. After a few moments I felt his hands grip my sides and he quickly lifted me off his lap and all but threw me back to my spot. I landed hard on my butt and let out a startled yelp.

"You all right back there?" Emmett yelled, laughter in his tone.

"Yeah Emmett! Go faster, I was almost airborne that last time." I called back sarcastically.

I shot a glare at Edward and pressed myself further against the cargo, trying to put as much distance as possible between us once again.

"It was an accident you know," I whispered angrily, turning my back to him.

I was thoroughly pissed off now at his misplaced hostility. We were all just trying to survive at this point. All of us were out of our comfort zone and heading towards an unknown future. He could at least be grateful that we pulled his sorry ass off that lab floor.

I huffed indignantly.

Emmett slowed the Hummer to a crawl as the underbrush had grown thicker the further we traveled. Branches from low trees and bushes scraped against the side of the truck, creating a high pitched keening noise much like nails on a chalkboard.

Just when I thought I would go crazy from the noise we broke through the forest and found ourselves in middle of a clearing. I craned my neck towards the front, not trusting the situation enough to sit up on my knees again. Just ahead of us was a large wooden archway with intricate designs and letters spelling out Woodmont.

Emmett honked the horn and once again picked up the CB mic, calling Jasper and letting him know we were here. Several minutes later, one of the large wooden doors slowly opened. A tall man, hopefully Jasper, stood and assessed the situation in front of him before he motioned for us to move forward. He walked slowly ahead, leading us through the gate before having us stop shortly after we were through.

He ran around us quickly to close and secure the gate behind us. When he returned he asked Emmett to cut the engine and told us all to climb out.

We clambered out and stood along the truck. Jasper shone a flashlight towards us, highlighting every one of us in turn. Our recent adventures left us all looking haggard. Carlisle and Esme stood together holding hands. Both of them looking tired and Esme's usually neatly styled hair hung in wisps and stray tendrils around her face. Emmett's fatigues were wrinkled, his shirt hung half tucked and was smeared with dirt and grease. Rosalie seemed the most tired but her face held a hard stare and her arms were wrapped around her body, daring anyone to touch her. Edward stood dejected. His face swollen and bruised, his shirt stained with his blood. I could only speculate on my own appearance.

Jasper chuckled and seemed to be highly amused at the motley crew in front of him.

"I was gonna be a tough guy and search you all to make sure you weren't going to be any trouble" he drawled.

"But y'all look too tired and hard up to be of any harm." He continued, smiling and shaking his head.

"Just up ahead is the main hall. You can park there for now and I'll lead you to the cabins. We'll worry about unloading tomorrow morning. My wife, Alice, has fixed up some stew if y'all are hungry. If not, she made up the first cabin. I apologize, for now the beds we have are bunk beds. But y'all are looking too tired to care about that right now."

"Anywhere you can put us will be fine." Carlisle said on behalf of the group "We appreciate your offer to let us stay here."

Jasper waved his hand in a friendly dismissal. "It's what we're here for."

Despite my exhaustion I decided to walk along with Jasper rather than return to the back of the Hummer for the few hundred feet to the main hall and cabins. Esme and Rosalie joined me on the short trek and we walked along in amiable silence.

As we approached the main hall I noticed the windows were aglow with a soft light and a nearby cabin was lit in a similar fashion. The front door opened and a small woman stepped through carrying a lantern. Her face lit up in welcome and she rushed forward to greet us.

She wrapped us each in a warm embrace like we were lost family and we introduced ourselves.

"I'm so happy to meet you all!" she gushed and turned to hug the men who had just arrived.

"I'm Alice." She began "Y'all look so tired! Are you hungry? I made some stew when we got your call. We've got some water, are you thirsty?"

"Slow down Alice," Jasper teased, "let them breathe."

We sat together around a long table with bench seats and Alice brought out steaming bowls of a thick stew made with beans and canned vegetables. It smelled amazing and we all forgot out manners as we dug in, thankful for the first hot and complete meal we'd had in several days.

Alice smiled graciously as she watched us eat. Our silence seemed to be the best compliment to her and her meal.

"We'll show you to the cabin." Jasper said, noticing our drooping eyes as we finished.

We shuffled out and walked close together along the path leading to the cabins. I looked around and with the help of the moon and Jasper's lamp, I could just make out several other little cabins and what looked like a small pier jutting out into a vast glassy lake. The air surrounding us smelled like a comforting mixture of pine trees and earth. A chorus of crickets serenaded us as we walked the worn path between the main hall and our new home.

We traipsed through the door and separated, falling into the first made up bed we came to. I kicked off my shoes, pulled the quilt over my head to block out noise and light, and without another thought I fell asleep.

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**A/N: Alright! The gang s'all here!!**

**The Colony broke 1,000 hits on Saturday. To everyone reading and reviewing, THANK YOU SO MUCH!! I can't tell you enough how much it means to me ;)**

**I can't end without thanking Bublichka. She is not only a master-beta, (I've been **_**dying **_**to use that) she's a friend and knows enough about me to use for serious blackmail.**

**RedVelvetHeaven.........just..........MWAH!!!!!!**

**QOTW:**

**If you could share a cabin with ANY Twilight character, who would it be?**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: Twilight belongs to Stephenie Meyer. **

**Chapter** **7 **

**BPOV**

The acrid smell of burning wood filled my nostrils and I shot up in bed, scraping the top of my head on the exposed springs of the bunk above mine. I looked around the room, searching for the origin of the smell that woke me. I realized it was coming from outside and filtering through the screen door that was swaying gently in the breeze. I sighed in relief and brought my eyes up to the offending springs and noticed several strands of my hair tangled in the coils. I gingerly rubbed my head as I swung my legs over the edge of my bed and kept my head lowered so I didn't make the same mistake. I looked around the room again letting my eyes leisurely take in my surroundings. The cabin was much larger than it had initially appeared to be when we had arrived. Eight sets of bunk beds lined the walls on either side leaving an open space in the middle of the cabin. Towards the back, around the fireplace, there seemed to be a communal bathroom. From my seat looking through the door-less entryway I could see several sinks. I wondered if the toilets were enclosed and then, horrified, I wondered if they flushed. I continued to let my eyes wander along the beds, noticing most were empty. Farther back into the cabin I could make out a blond head poking from underneath a quilt and I was thankful I wasn't the last one to wake up.

I tip-toed into the bathrooms and was relieved to find the toilets in their own stalls. I walked into one and tentatively pushed down on the handle and groaned when it reached all the way down but did not flush. I decided then to forgo using the facilities at the moment until I found out just how this was going to work. Nothing spreads disease faster than poor sanitation. I involuntarily shivered, remembering my first infectious disease epidemiology class in college where we learned the affects of bacteria in close living conditions with no disinfectant.

I passed Rosalie's sleeping form again on my way back through the cabin and walked out onto the covered porch I hadn't noticed last night.

I looked up towards the sky, trying to remember early earth science and how to tell time by the sun's position. It was high, almost center, and bright. Definitely not morning but not evening. Good job.

I made my way towards what seemed to be the center of our little cluster where I saw Alice tending several things over the fire.

"Can I help you with anything, Alice?" I asked, coming to stand beside her.

"Oh! No thank you, Bella. Please, go sit down. Would you like some coffee?" She asked though she handed me a cup before I could answer and smiled warmly at me.

I held it up to my nose and breathed in reverently before smiling widely and thanking her.

I approached the picnic table where everyone had gathered and sat down next to Esme. Jasper stood at the head and appeared to be talking about the camp while gesturing around pointing in various directions.

"Over there are the stables. They usually board the horses in the off season, but I want to venture over there just the same." Jasper explained before taking a sip of his coffee.

"The showers are housed in that building." he continued and I perked up.

"Showers?" I asked hopefully.

"Useless." Jasper said regretfully, then chuckled at my crestfallen features.

"How..? What..? Ugh!" I sputtered.

Alice had joined us then, sitting next to where Jasper stood and emitted a small giggle at my horrified astonishment. Jasper looked down at her, momentarily surprised and gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze.

"Well, you have a couple of options," Alice spoke up, "We have a well on the property we can draw from and use that for sponge bathing, so to speak. Or there is always the lake. I did bring some of my homemade soap with me." She smiled brightly, enjoying my slack jawed appearance at her options.

I never considered myself a girly girl. I can and will get dirty with the rest of them. But as I thought back to my last shower I almost cried in regret that I didn't appreciate it then and stay under the hot spray until it grew cold.

"I'm sure by the end of today I won't care how I get clean." I sighed.

"You have no idea." Emmett said, grinning evilly.

I looked between him and Carlisle who was snickering along side Emmett and I was suddenly nervous about our day's activities. Even Edward looked amused, one corner of his mouth raised in a smirk.

"They're just teasing you, Bella." Esme soothed, shooting them a chastising glance.

"Don't fuck with me boys." I said pointedly, causing Jasper to choke on his coffee and Alice to laugh out loud. Esme tsk'd and shook her head smiling.

"Bella," She chided, "Language."

The noise of a door being violently slammed open distracted us all and we turned to see a very put out Rosalie on the front porch.

"Why won't the toilets FLUSH?" she yelled hands on her hips.

"I meant to ask about that too." I said, trying to hide my laughter at Rosalie's enraged form. _Wait until she hears about the showers,_ I thought to myself.

"Well, now is as good a time as any to show you all." Alice said as she and motioned for us to follow her and Jasper.

We reached a small shed at the end of the row of cabins. Jasper opened the door, gesturing us all inside before pulling a flashlight from his jeans. The shed was the size of a moderate walk in closet. We gathered around the stacked stone that housed the opening of the well. Emmett stood across from me. I noticed that since Rosalie had joined us he had walked just behind her and now had situated himself right next to her. I raised an eyebrow in his direction and he lifted his right shoulder in a shrug and lowered his head to hide his dimpled smile. The light from the flashlight and sunlight streaming in from the opened door giving us just enough light to see the contents lining the walls. This was obviously the utility shed along with the well house since every inch of exposed wall was covered with various tools hanging on pegs.

Jasper reached down at his feet and brought up a bucket secured to a thick rope. He tossed the bucket down the hole and a loud splash echoed around us. Emmett reached up and wiped a non existent drop of water from his face, turned towards my chuckle, and winked.

"The water is always pretty high in the spring from the runoff and storms," Jasper explained. "It shouldn't be too hard to bring up a bucket or two."

His voice reflected the ease as he barely seemed to be exerting any effort to bring up the bucket.

He slowed his pulling as the bucket came into view and bent forward to grab the handle and hauled it the rest of the way up using his hands.

"See?" he grinned at us, "Not too bad."

Alice produced another bucket and held it steady as he poured the water from his bucket into hers.

"Thank you, baby." he said brightly as he kissed her head.

I looked away from the display and mentally rolled my eyes. While Jasper seemed to be genuinely appreciative of his wife's help his tone was coddling, like he was praising a puppy. I was bothered by the open affection and was confused by my resentment towards the happily married man.

I had been raised by a single father who was the chief of police. He sheltered me, wanting to keep me innocent of the outside world for as long as he could. When I worried over his job, he would assure me he was safe. No one would hurt the police chief, he'd say. While I was a freshman in college, my father's house was burglarized and he was left for dead with a bullet wound to the head. I realized then, that no one was untouchable. I spent several years angry with my father for leaving me alone and no longer protected. I threw myself into my studies and began taking self defense classes in an effort to prove to myself that I didn't need anyone caring for me. When I came to Emory fresh out of school, Carlisle was head of the ER and he took me under his wing. He saw someone who, although I violently denied it, wanted someone to look out for her. He never offered and I never asked but we both knew he was there.

My sudden forced dependence on friends and strangers felt desperate to me and I was struggling not to lose myself to submission.

I turned towards the opening of the well as everyone began walking, single file, from the shed. I quickly lowered the bucket back into the well and then drew it up. It wasn't quite as easy as Jasper had made it look but I managed to do it with a little effort. It was childish, but I wanted to prove to myself that I was still capable after all. I smiled smugly to myself as I held the bucket against the well edge. A shadow descended on the space around me and I looked up to find Edward standing in the doorway watching me. He took a small step into the shed and reached towards the bucket in my hands. The sudden movement startled me and I jumped back, forgetting my hold on the precariously perched bucket. It tottered on the ledge and I was grateful when it fell back into the well instead of spilling onto me.

"What?" I questioned haughtily.

"I thought you might...nothing." he said quietly. He cleared his throat as if to say more but instead, turned to follow the group who were now almost to the cabin.

I caught up with the group in the bathroom as Jasper was preparing to show us why we had the bucket of water.

"This should be enough to force the water through the pipes to 'flush' the toilet." He instructed.

We all leaned in, watching anxiously, as he tipped the bucket. I began thinking of worse case scenario and started backing up as the visual of toilet water spilling over and onto the nearest shoes nagged my mind. But I was pleasantly surprised that the water not only stayed inside the bowl but that it did in fact disappear down the pipes.

There was a collective sigh of relief between us as we looked at the now empty commode.

********************************************************************************************************

"We've still got a lot to do to get settled." Jasper stated with Carlisle nodding in agreement. They had both taken on the responsibility of co-leaders. Carlisle was the oldest and Jasper, being a survivalist, had the most expertise.

After our toilet training, we all adjourned to the main building and were now seated around the long table in the dining hall. We were happy once again for another hot meal courtesy of Alice. We also ate most of the fruit that Rosalie and Esme had found in our earlier searches through the city since some of it had already begun to spoil. Alice had brought several jars of preserved fruits and lamented the fact that she didn't have to supplies needed to preserve what we had.

"After we unload and organize our supplies, I would like us to walk the property a bit before it gets dark." Jasper said, speaking specifically to the men. "We need to be familiar with our surroundings and discuss protection."

"I want to go." I spoke up, "Shouldn't we all know the grounds?"

"Once we have everything secure, we'll show you ladies around. Don't worry." said Jasper. His tone was nothing but understanding, but I still felt his actions were patronizing. We were all capable adults and I didn't appreciate the sheltering.

I scowled and picked at the table beneath me as Jasper returned to speaking with the men. I knew we should all be making a team effort to ensure our safety and well being, I just wasn't very happy with the implied teams.

"We'll have plenty to do while the men are being boring, Bella." Alice said cheerily, either oblivious to or blatantly ignoring my grumpy attitude.

The bench scraped along the floor as we rose to go about our designated responsibilities. The men brought a few of the outside tables closer to the cars and we all unloaded them, placing items on the table by groups.

Between us we had managed to bring about two weeks worth of food, several days worth of drinking water and various luxury items. I looked along the tables and laughed to myself at the batteries, flashlights, clothes and toilet paper which were now considered luxuries. Carlisle, Esme, and I had also unloaded the backpacks we had brought with us. Adding our stash of batteries, medical supplies and the standard green scrubs emblazoned with Property of Emory Hospital.

Once everything had been accounted for and written down, the men headed off, leaving us girls to set up house.

We stood together, glancing back and forth between the stuff and us.

"Does this place have an infirmary?" I asked. Alice nodded, smiling brightly at my initiative.

"It's in the main building alongside the kitchen. I'll show you." she said as we both grabbed an armful of supplies and headed inside. I let Alice lead me inside toward our new makeshift hospital. She left me there while she, Esme and Rosalie tackled the kitchen and other cabins.

The small room Alice had led me to was stuffy and had become more of a storage closet. Several things had been placed inside and would have to be moved before I could get to work. I looked around at the work ahead and began to really miss my ipod.

I put down the supplies I had and got to work carrying chairs and various boxes marked games and arts and crafts and set them atop the long table closest to my room. I would definitely need to go through those later.

Once the room had been purged of it's clutter, it seemed a little less stifling and I was able to add our supplies to the already stored band-aids, antiseptics and lotions. I found a broom in a supply closet in the kitchen and swept out the room as well.

An hour later, I looked around from the doorway surveying my work. The cots had been dusted off and I had found sheets to cover the plastic mats. I had pulled down the curtain separating the two small beds and shook them out in the open space in front of the main hall before I replaced them. Everything was in place.

I saw Carlisle come up beside me and he placed his hand on my shoulder. I moved aside so he could enter and look around. We didn't speak as he walked around opening cupboards and drawers. I knew he wasn't checking my work, he was just getting to know the area and where everything was. Just in case.

For the first time in several long days I felt in control and almost normal.

Esme had once told me that when she and Carlisle were first married they moved a lot. The first thing she did when moving into a new home was set up the kitchen. The bathrooms would be void of toilet paper and the bed springs and headboard would still be stacked along the bedroom walls, but until every pot had a cupboard and every spice was placed in the rack she didn't feel at home.

I finally understood what she meant.

Once Carlisle was happy with the layout of our clinic, we rejoined our group. Alice began chattering happily about the way the cabins had been set up. One cabin for each couple to have for themselves and one cabin would house the singles in our group. She brought us to the 'singles' cabin and opened the door with a flourish. Rosalie had already seen it so she stepped aside to let Emmett, Edward, and me through.

The other bunk beds had been removed and instead the room was sectioned into four separate areas with a small picnic table in the open area in front of the fireplace to make a rustic living room. Each remaining bunk bed had been dressed with curtains that could be pulled for privacy and beside each bed was a small nightstand. Rosalie had already claimed her area since her picture was perched on the farthest table and the little blue hat had been placed on her pillow. I walked over to my bed from the night before and admired the craftiness of our makeshift curtains. Shower curtain rings had been hooked along the edge of the top bunk railing. The rings held some type of fabric through tiny cuts. Each curtain was secured to it's adjacent bedpost by a small strip of the same material.

"Alice...Rosalie...Esme...this is amazing!" I gushed. The care and detail taken to create a home out of what had been thought of as just shelter was touching. While in the midst of great fear over an uncertain future, strangers had come together and took it upon themselves to provide and care for each other.

"It looks so homey." agreed Emmett.

Edward sat on his bed, jaw clenched, and eyes fixed ahead. His face had become an expressionless mask. His attitude was really beginning to get on my nerves. We had all been through hell and back in the last several months and I know we were all trying to heal from the loss we had faced. Edward seemed to be the only one not even making an effort to move on. Instead he was just existing, going through the motions.

His attitude caused an awkward silence to descend upon the room and we all turned hoping to make a quick exit and escape. I turned around once before shutting the door, wondering if he was following. I caught him staring after us. His face unexpectedly morphing in anguish.

I hesitated in the doorway my anger fading, wanting to go to him and comfort him. His face hardened once again and he watched me as I turned away from him to join the others gathered around the fire outside.

I sat next to Rosalie and laid my head against her shoulder. She was talking to Carlisle but but she snaked her arm around my shoulders and absentmindedly played with my hair. In that moment I decided to confront Edward once and for all. If Rosalie could continue to function and be a contributor to our group after the trauma she had endured, Edward could too. I felt the need to show him that he could overcome his guilt. We had all felt survivors guilt. We had all experienced loss on some level. It might not have been my place but he needed to know we were all here for him and would help him however we could. Maybe all he needed was to set up his proverbial kitchen.

I also promised myself that this time I would not let his temper affect me.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

**A/N: Hi again! My Dearest readers, I promise one day Edward won't be such an ass. Really. Maybe. ;) **

**My Beta, of course, is the amazing ****Bublichka****. I will never be able to say Thank You enough for all the work you do! **

**RedVelvetHeaven****, your support is invaluable and you're the best ego booster.**

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	8. Chapter 8

**It's that time again.......**

**Bublichka is my beta and the cheese to my macaroni. **_**Always**_**.**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight.**

**Chapter 8 **

**EPOV**

This was surreal. The past week had been a waking nightmare. I had to face the ones who trusted me and tell them they were all going to die. I watched my city fall around me and now I'd been 'rescued' and brought to this abandoned camp against my will. I'd attempted to convince Carlisle of all the work I had to do. This war was not over.

He, in turn, kept insisting on my safety. If I was dead how could I help anyone he reasoned and, in front of my saviours, I lost it. I ranted and raved as Carlisle watched and those around me stared at their feet. They should have just left me behind. Whether I was in Atlanta or an empty gas station it was all the same. I was worthless.

And now, here I was, traipsing through the woods with all the other guys, touring the camp grounds. Jasper and Carlisle were making small talk while conferring with a map and Emmett was whistling the God damn Andy Griffith theme song. I was silent. I took the walking stick Emmett had found for me and beat unsuspecting bushes and tree limbs into submission.

I was aware of how my attitude was affecting everyone. But I couldn't be bothered to care. I kept walking along as Jasper pointed out several 'key' areas. They were putting all they had into making everyone comfortable and safe but I felt all their energies were misplaced and it just made me angry. I could feel the rage in me at their acceptance and I struggled to keep my face neutral. After finding the empty stables and wandering the camp's perimeter we arrived back at the cabins.

I broke off from the group and made my way towards the shoreline of the lake behind the cabins, suddenly craving solitude. The sinking sun was glinting off the water. Tied to the pier was a small boat, two paddles sticking out over the top. The breeze pushed the boat to and fro from its post causing gentle ripples which swelled as they made their way to the shore. I thought of my father as I reached down to gather several flat, smooth stones and skip them along the top of the lake.

When I was younger my father would bring me to the park along the Chattahoochee River. It was always a rare treat to have his undivided attention. We would feed the ducks our day old bread and see who could skip rocks the farthest. Even in my youngest memory I knew it would never last. My father spent his life caring for everyone else, it seemed, leaving my mother and me frequently to travel to third world countries and WHO summits. It wasn't until I was older that I finally understood the pull that allowed him to watch his only child grow up through photos and anecdotes.

My father was there, in some poor border town, investigating several cases of what we now know is the H9N2 virus, when he became ill.

He died alone in some hovel and the irony was not lost on me.

When I received word of my father's death, a small part of me began to doubt our efforts. The virus had already reached all the continents. He was at ground zero and was unable to find the answers. We were several thousands of miles away playing with synthetic variations of this virus. Although we had several live samples of the virus, we could not replicate it and nothing we developed killed it. My mind brought me to his point over and over with no hope of resolution. Always a dead end.

_There has to be something I'm missing. There has to be an answer._

_If I can't go back to Atlanta, how can I continue to work on this? I wonder if the the vault in the basement was breached. I need to get back there eventually. I need to find out if the work we had done was still intact_.

I was startled out of my thoughts when Carlisle came into my periphery. I threw my last rock and watched it jump several times before sinking down into the murky water. Carlisle was followed by Emmett and Jasper and they grouped around me looking like they were about to host a fucking intervention.

"I think we should organize overnight patrols," Emmett began, "and we wanted to know your opinion."

I looked between the men around me. _They were asking my opinion_? My first reaction was to shrug as if to say 'whatever' but they looked at me as though my thoughts were all that mattered.

"Um, I..." I stammered, scratching the back of my neck thoughtfully "sure?"

"Great!" Jasper said wholeheartedly. I was completely dumbfounded at their attempts to involve me after I had been nothing but sullen. They were treating me as if I was important in the thought process and implication of their plan. They seemed genuine.

"There are four of us. Should we have four 3 hour shifts?" I asked.

"Perfect" said Carlisle reassuringly.

"I can take first, if that's OK?" I offered.

"OK, does anyone mind if I take the midnight to 3 shift? " Carlisle asked.

"That's not a problem, Carlisle" Emmett said as he volunteered himself for the 3 am to 6 shift leaving Jasper with the 6-9.

"We can rotate if necessary." I proposed and everyone nodded their head in agreement.

I wondered how much of this conversation was for my own benefit. Everyone seemed almost too eager to involve me and make it seem like I counted. How much of this conversation was really necessary aside from trying to make me feel involved?

Having come to an compromise we made our way back towards the fire where the ladies had also agreed to a schedule over cooking duties. Bella and Esme high fived each other looking quite pleased over being paired together.

"Did you get breakfast or dinner ladies?" Carlisle asked with a mischievous glint in his eye.

"We got dinner." Bella said proudly.

Carlisle turned to us and warned in a loud whisper, "Make sure you eat a LARGE breakfast, boys."

"Carlisle!" Esme admonished, swatting his arm.

"You know I'm teasing, Dear. You and Bella are great cooks!" He reassured her before turning back to us smiling, shaking his head, and mouthing the word _No._

* * *

"I'm not so sure about this Jasper." I said hesitantly when Jasper tried to offer me a gun at the beginning of my patrol.

"It's locked. You won't need it, but I would feel better if you at least carried it." he said as he thrust the gun towards me again and proceeded to strap a holster over my shoulder so the gun would sit snug against my side.

"You have your lantern?" asked Carlisle and I nodded and held it up to show.

I felt like a fool with a gun strapped to my side holding a lantern like some modern day cowboy.

Night had fallen and everyone was making their way towards their respective cabins, leaving me alone by the dying fire.

The evening had gone well. I had rejoined the group after spending several minutes collecting myself after the cabin reveal. Nobody mentioned my distance and although no one tried to engage me in conversation, I didn't feel left out.

Bella and Esme had done a decent job for their first time cooking over an open fire. I would take patrol any day over that chore. We'd all starve if I cooked.

We had eaten outside this time, circled around the fire. Conversation had flowed easily between those around me as they lamented lightheartedly about the foods they missed since our lives had changed. Rosalie was missing sushi. Esme and Bella were missing chocolate. Emmett began listing several foods and would have continued to torture us had we not stopped him after he started to rattle off several types of pizza. Carlisle said he would kill for some sesame chicken and egg rolls. Alice wistfully mentioned funnel cake and Jasper said he would miss pecan waffles from Waffle House the most.

I picked up a large stick and poked at the embers glowing before me. It was getting chilly now that the sun was down and a breeze had picked up.

I began to wonder if I should go back in to grab a blanket before anyone fell asleep when I heard footsteps behind me. I turned to see Bella walking towards me wrapped in her quilt. She tripped and swore quietly as she made her way over. I lifted my lantern in an attempt to help her navigate the dark terrain. She smiled thankfully and handed me a blanket as she sat down. Her hair was down and fell into her face as she situated herself beside me on the bench. She impatiently pushed her hair away, tucked several wayward strands behind her ear, and turned to face me.

"I thought you might need it." she said quietly, wrapping herself tighter.

I tossed a small log into the embers and poked around until a lone flame reached out to take hold and begin to consume the wood.

"You know," Bella started when I made no move to talk, "You could at least say thank you. I didn't come out here to freeze my ass off."

"You can go back inside. I don't want you freezing on my account." I retorted snidely.

She huffed and made a grab at the blanket still folded on my lap. I grabbed her wrist to keep her from taking it while I held onto the other end of the blanket.

I felt her pulse begin to race through my grip before she yanked her hand free and scowled at me, her cheeks reddening. I found her temper amusing and fought the smile I felt forming.

"Don't you get tired of being such an asshole?" She asked her eyes burning into mine.

My mouth dropped open and I stared at her completely thrown off guard by her bluntness. _Was she serious?_ No one had ever called me out on my attitude before. As I sat there trying to come up with a snappy comeback I realized that no one outside of my family had spent any extended amount of time with me in this capacity. Nobody really knew me.

I closed my mouth and opened it again to speak but no sound came out.

"Anyway," she continued as if she hadn't just insulted me "we're all here because for whatever reason we have _survived_ this virus. We are all trying to make the most of this situation. No one is asking you to forget what you've lost, what we've _all _lost."

"At least you're not personally responsible for this." I said bitterly.

"Seriously?" she asked, incredulous. "You released the virus?"

"Don't be stupid!" I scoffed, "of course not."

"You're the one being stupid," she shot back her voice rising in anger, "so you couldn't stop it. So what? Neither could Carlisle or I. You don't see us beating ourselves up over it."

"You don't know anything." I said quietly, my voice full of disdain.

"Get over yourself you emo bastard." She spat as she got up suddenly and stalked back to the cabin leaving me stunned again and surprisingly hurt.

"She has a point you know." Carlisle said as he came to sit by me moments later.

"Which part are you agreeing with, Carlisle?" I questioned "that I'm stupid or that I'm an emo bastard?"

He chuckled lightly at my rising indignation but turned serious as he spoke. "Do you think we haven't all felt the guilt of being survivors? Do you think, me of all people, didn't feel responsible for every one of those first deaths?"

"Carlisle, it was my job to end this. It was what I was trained to do..." I trailed off hoping he could see what I couldn't seem to explain.

"Yes, Edward, it was your job." he said emphasizing the word 'was'.

I looked at him, eyes wide "What are you saying? I can't just let this go!"

"Have you ever stopped to think that despite your team's work and the efforts of the world's medical population, that maybe there are no scientific answers?"

"Carlisle, really? Are you going to start quoting scripture now?"

He gave an exasperated sigh and rubbed his hands over his face. "I don't know, Edward. I just know that sometimes despite our best efforts there is no right or wrong. It just is."

I violently jabbed the embers around the log trying to reign in my thoughts. So many were running through my mind. Is it just that simple? Could I let it go and move on? Why did Bella care if I was an asshole? Why do I care?

No, I decided. It's not that simple and I can't let it go. The best I could do at that time was to make an effort to contribute to the safety and well being of our group. Once that was done I could go back to Atlanta and into the lab and continue the work that desperately needed to be finished. I was certain my change in attitude would also make everyone more comfortable hopefully keeping any further confrontations at bay.

I felt a shift in my mood in response to my decision and awareness washed over me. The past 24 hours had been spent in an almost dream like state as my internal torment had taken precedence over everything else. Making a conscious decision to attempt to move on was like a curtain lifting. My mind was exposed and it made me thoroughly aware of my surroundings.

I felt lighter, almost giddy.

I hadn't realized how much time had passed until Carlisle looked at his watch and spoke up.

"Your shifts up, Edward," he said quietly. "Go get some rest and don't be too mad at Bella. She only speaks up because she cares."

"Here," I said smiling and tossed him the blanket "it's getting cold."

I began my trek back to the cabin but noticed I was still hooked into the holster holding the small pistol.

"Uh, Carlisle, could you help me out of this?" I said as I walked back to him.

I lifted my arms to give him better access and he gently unhooked the contraption and held it out in front of him as if it was a bomb that would go off at any minute. He laid it down gently on the nearest table before coming back to sit on the bench in front of the fire.

"What?" I asked holding back a smile, "You don't want to wear it?"

He looked at me as if I had just sprouted horns and shook his head.

I chuckled to myself as I walked back into the cabin. A lamp had been placed on the middle of the table and it cast a dim light over the room helping me make my way to my bed.

I toed off my shoes and peeled away my socks. I looked down and was suddenly mindful that I had been in the same clothes with my dried blood along the front for a couple of days now. I made a disgusted grunt and quickly pulled it off. I crumpled it into a ball and decided to burn it tomorrow. I stood barefoot and shirtless by my bed not really tired but having nothing to do. I was over all the heart to hearts I had been subjected to tonight, so going back to Carlisle was not an option. I got the sense of someone watching me and looked over to meet Bella's wide eyes. Finally, realizing I had caught her staring, she gasped and pulled the covers over her head.

I padded across the room and knelt down before lightly tapping on what I hoped was her shoulder.

"What?" came her muffled reply form underneath the blanket.

"I left my blanket outside, can I have yours?" I asked, knowing it would get a rise out of her.

She didn't disappoint. She threw aside her blanket with an aggravated huff and sat up catching her head on the springs above her.

"God...Stupid...frackin...Will I ever Learn?" she grumbled while my eyes watered with my repressed laughter.

"I'm sorry," I choked out "I was just picking on you. I didn't mean for you to get hurt. Are you OK?"

"Yes," she grumbled rubbing her head. "Are you bi-polar or something?" She asked and I feigned shock.

"I think there might be one more blanket left on the shelf in the bathroom. It's next to the extra shirts." she finished pointedly and I noticed she was looking everywhere but at me.

"Are you blushing? Does my being shirtless offend you?" I asked jokingly.

"It's nothing I've never seen before, but if you're so cold, extra clothes would only help." She said flatly. "Can I go back to sleep now?"

"You were never asleep," I said as I stood. I raised my hands and stretched exaggeratedly in her face before turning to make my way to the bathrooms.

I heard her mutter "Asshole" before she pulled the covers back over her head and I couldn't help but to laugh out loud.

* * *

**A/N**: 'The Colony' reached over 100 reviews this weekend!!!!!!! This astounds me. Thank you all so much for reading and loving this fic!

RedVelvetHeaven and ScarlettLetters, your support is overwhelming and I hope 'The Colony' will always live up to your praise ;)

Just another friendly reminder to check out the Twilight Twenty-Five. 83 fanfic authors writing 25 drabbles or one shots. Link on my profile.

Oh yeah, and the link for my Twilighted thread is on my profile as well....*hint, hint* ;)


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns it. **

**Bublichka is the best Beta. Ever.**

**Chapter 9 **

**BPOV**

The following morning dawned gray. The sunny spring weather we had been blessed with over the past several days had dissolved into a light drizzle and thunder rolled in the distance announcing a coming storm. I exited our cabin and stood just off the porch with my face upturned into the descending rain. The water pooled on my forehead and dripped down my nose. I felt slightly less grimy but it still wasn't enough. I vowed that after breakfast I would finally brave the unknown of well water and homemade soap if it would further the feeling that the impromptu rain shower had begun.

I lowered my face and shivered as several rivulets made their way down my back.

The rain began to pick up as the thunder grew louder in it's intensity. The pin-prick droplets of the slight mist had become fatter and began to fall faster. Edward grabbed my hand as he ran past from our cabin towards the main hall and began to pull me along. I squeaked in surprise and struggled to keep up as the rain fell faster. We reached the door of the main hall and I laughed as he shook the wet hair from his eyes. We stood, facing each other, dripping wet and breathing hard from our mad dash across the yard separating the cabins. His eyes held mine and I noticed, for the first time, that his eyes were a brilliant green and even in his relaxed state they were intense in their focus. His tongue peaked out to remove the water remaining on his lips.

"I'm an asshole," he blurted out and I laughed again.

"The first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem." I recited jokingly. His eyes remained locked with mine and I shivered.

"You're cold," he stated and reached to open the door even as I shook my head no.

We entered the hall amid wide eyes and gaping mouths and I remembered we were still holding hands. My face burned with embarrassment as I jerked my hand away in an attempt to disentangle our fingers. Edward ran his now free hand through his hair and we broke apart to sit at different ends of the table.

The storm died down as we ate, but the rain continued to fall, so we decided to stay together in the hall gathered around the fire Jasper had built this morning.

"Oh!" I exclaimed during a lull in conversation, "I think I found some boxes marked 'games' when I was cleaning out the clinic."

I brought the boxes over and began to empty them onto the table as I listed off the names to the group.

"Checkers, of course. Battleship. Oh goodness," I stopped and looked at Carlisle "Operation," I groaned.

"It's no fun without batteries." he said smirking at me knowingly. He knew my absolute hatred of the game as I'd shared with him the anxiety it caused me when I touched the metal sides making the game shake and emit the grating noise.

I opened the box and tentatively touched the metal tweezers to the side of the funny bone hole. Nothing. I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Is it ON?" Emmett asked coming up beside me.

I located the switch and turned the game on. I grabbed the tweezers again and made the slow process of testing the game once again. Just as I got near the metal tab, Emmett grabbed my sides and screeched in my ear causing me to scream loudly and cover my face with shaking hands. The game fell to the floor and the room erupted into laughter.

"Jerk!" I screamed while playfully swatting at Emmett.

"Oh, you wanna fight?" He asked a mischievous glint in his eye.

"Bring it Betty." I said with a determined scowl.

We circled each other, fists raised in defensive positions. He took a light swing towards me and I blocked it and swerved to the left, jabbing him in the ribs.

"Hey!" He yelped in surprise.

I took advantage of his distraction and made a hard sweep along the back of his knees. In true David and Goliath fashion, Emmett fell forward as his knees bent involuntarily and he hit the ground on all fours.

He was still for several moments and I began to wonder if he had been hurt by the fall. His head lifted and his face held an exaggerated pout. He got up gracefully despite his size and sulked over to sit by Rosalie. She soothed him mockingly and once again the room erupted into laughter.

A heated tournament of battleship helped the men pass the time and Alice and Rosalie got into the box of arts and crafts. The girls and I spent the rest of our time inside coloring pictures out of a "My first time at camp" coloring book and making feather laden dream catchers while laughing over the absurdity until tears came to our eyes.

Esme and I busied ourselves in the the kitchen in preparation for dinner. We carefully marked off the supplies used as we removed them from the pantry. We'd found a sealed bag of elbow macaroni while we emptied the arts and crafts box and were looking forward to something different for dinner. We found a large can of pasta sauce and added several slices of chopped up beef jerky to the sauce as it heated on the wood burning stove. It wasn't five star, but it was close enough to spaghetti for us.

We proudly brought our offering to the hungry group sitting around the long table. It was a post apocalyptic Norman Rockwell if I ever saw one.

We sat around chatting while we ate. I began to notice that when we spoke of our current situation we all avoided discussion of long term plans. No one could be sure what lay before us but we weren't speaking of it either.

I cleared my throat loudly to catch everyone's attention. "I know it's only April," I started "but I'm worried about this winter. How are we going to make this work?" I asked emotion creeping through my calm facade making my voice waver.

"We will become self sufficient." Jasper promised. "It will take a little time and a lot of work, but I've been thinking about this as well."

"What are you thinking?" Emmett asked

"Ten miles from here is a small town." Jasper began. "I would like to go tomorrow and check out the local shops and small hardware store. There's also a clinic and schools. But I think our main focus, right now, should be on food. We'll gather what we can in town but then our main focus will be to see what we can grow."

"We should decide who goes and who stays." Carlisle suggested

"We can draw names." I said nodding my head vigorously in agreement with Carlisle.

"Is everyone OK with that?" Jasper asked looking around.

"I volunteer to stay." said Alice quietly "I don't want to see...." she trailed off and Jasper rubbed her back soothingly.

"I'll stay, too." Rosalie smiled empathetically at Alice.

I grabbed a piece of paper and a crayon from the craft box. I tore the paper into several strips and wrote the remaining names down. I folded the pieces and placed them into an empty mug.

"Four of us should be plenty. It gives us enough people to be efficient and still leave room for cargo. Don't you think?" Jasper asked and we nodded.

I reached in to pick the first name wishing for it to be mine.

"Jasper."

I pulled the second name and tried to hide my disappointment "Edward".

I almost swore as I pulled the third slip and revealed Emmett's name.

I grumbled as I gave the cup one last shake. I closed my eyes and crossed my fingers while openly hoping for my name. I pulled the name and had it unfolded before I opened an eye to peak.

"BELLA!" I cried out waving the small paper like a banner, excited over my chance at getting out and feeling like I was doing something.

I was still riding the high an hour later when our group broke up to prepare for the evening guard shift and trip in the morning. I had pulled Alice aside and asked after the soap she had promised and I helped her rip apart a few large sheets into various sizes to make towels and washcloths.

I made my way to the showers with my lantern, towels and soap. I held up the lantern and looked around the musty space. Although the rain had stopped long ago, the sky remained overcast hiding the moon and creating deep dark corners in the room.

I seriously considered waiting one more day to get clean but plucked up my courage and made my way hurriedly to the well.

I drew my bucket and made my way back to the showers careful not to spill one precious drop of the ice cold water.

I dipped my washcloth and braced for impact as I brought the dripping rag towards me. My body erupted into goosebumps that were borderline painful.

I let loose a loud squeal but continued on washing the days of sweat and grime from my body. The soap smelled amazing and left my skin feeling soft with a light scent of freesia. I finished cleaning my body and realized I was left with a bucket full of dirty water and I hadn't washed my hair yet. I shrugged at my inexperience and promised myself I would plan it out better next time. I bent forward and submerged my hair into the bucket and used the soap to wash my hair as well.

My teeth were chattering as I dressed in a pair of jeans and shirt that we had taken from Wal-Mart. I had also used the water to wash the only bra I had and carried it along with my makeshift towel so I could hang them to dry in our bathroom.

It felt so good to finally be clean. I found myself humming as I hung my things over the side of the farthest toilet stall keeping my bra in the corner so I didn't weird out the bachelors.

"How was it?" Rosalie asked coming up to stand beside me.

"Cold." I groaned "and I also learned we should use two buckets. One for hair and one for body."

She wrinkled her nose as I explained how I came about that particular lesson but laughed with me.

"Do you want some help getting the buckets to the shower?" I asked and she nodded.

We made our way to the showers. I carried both buckets and she carried her supplies as well as a large lantern. I'm sure it would have been better to wait until tomorrow morning to have more light but Rosalie seemed just as desperate as me to not spend one more minute carrying the physical reminder of our last several days.

"Are you all set?" I asked as I put down the buckets.

"Yeah." she said not looking at me and picking at the fringe on the makeshift towel.

"I never thought it would come to this," She whispered, and I looked over and saw her watery smile.

I grabbed her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze before I guided her over to a bench lining the wall. We sat down facing each other.

"I'm so lost, Bella." She began as the first tears began to fall. "I'm still so sad but I have moments where I feel alright....almost good. And it makes me feel bad."

I continued to hold her hands as I listened. I didn't want to cheapen her pain by saying I understood. Because I would never understand the pain and guilt of surviving yourself, after losing a child. All I could do was offer her my quiet confirmation that I would be here for her.

In another life we had lived on opposite ends of the spectrum. Our paths would have never crossed in social circles and if I had seen her I would have never thought we could be friends. Yet here we were, sitting together at an abandoned camp sharing an experience that would bond us as sisters for the rest of our lives.

"You should get to that bath before the water gets cold." I said jokingly in an attempt to cheer her up.

"Would you stay?" she asked "I mean, I don't want you to watch or anything, I just...I don't want to be alone right now."

"I know," I replied, "it's OK. I'll just be by this wall. There's a hook right there for the lantern."

"Thank you, Bella." She said

"It's what I'm here for." I replied, finally understanding the full meaning of the same words Jasper had said just two days ago.

I turned around to give Rose her privacy and watched the guys who remained around the campfire. Jasper and Emmett were showing Edward how to hold the small gun they had given him to use during his shift. His forearms flexed as he practiced unlocking and aiming. His brow was furrowed in concentration and I couldn't help but stare at his silhouette against the dancing light of the fire. Emmett said something I was too far away to hear and all three men laughed.

"I'm all set, Bella." Rose said coming up behind me and following my gaze.

I turned to help her carry her things and found her smirking at me.

"What?" I asked.

"You tell me." she retorted.

I rolled my eyes. "I'm just glad to see Edward being more involved." I said shrugging my shoulders.

"Uh-huh." she said, smiling and bumped me gently with her hip as she walked out of the door and made her way back to the cabin.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________

**A/N: I want to take a moment to thank everyone for reading. Your support and rec's mean the world to me. **

**To my faithful reviewers, THANK YOU!! I re read reviews when I get stuck and they seriously give me a kick in the ass and make me feel loved (It's a middle child thing....).**

**RedVelvetHeaven....words aren't enough. *MWAH***

**See ya'll next week ;)**


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight.**

**Bublichka, my Beta, owns me.**

**Chapter 10**

**EPOV**

The screen door banging behind Emmett woke me and I lay still for several seconds, staring out the nearest window. He came over to my bed and grinned down at me.

"Get your stanky ass up, boy!" he yelled in an exaggerated southern twang, "We goin' to town."

I shook my head at his enthusiasm and groaned as I rubbed my eyes. _I'll remember to close the privacy curtain tonight_, I told myself.

"Do I have time to bathe?" I asked scratching at my face and making a mental note to search everywhere for razors. I couldn't remember ever going this long without shaving.

"Hurry up" he said as he tossed me a towel and tried to throw the soap but I raised my hands to tell him I didn't want to touch the used soap.

"It didn't actually touch my body." he said looking offended.

"Sorry, it's just..." I stammered.

He waved his hand in dismissal, smiling. "Save it. You better hustle if you want to have any food before we go."

Less than an hour later Jasper, Emmett, Bella and I sat in the Land Rover, leaving our quiet sanctuary for a hopefully uneventful venture into the small town we thought was nearby.

Jasper carried a small firearm hidden under his jacket while Emmett wore his gun openly strapped across his broad chest. No one knew exactly where anything was so we kept our eyes focused on the scenery around us, looking for places to stop and search. I wasn't sure about anyone else, but I was hoping we wouldn't encounter anyone.

We drove with the windows down. The air still carried a damp chill from yesterday's storm. Bella sat with her eyes closed and face turned into the wind, a serene smile on her face and for a moment I was at peace.

Several miles into our trip we came upon the empty outskirts of town and I shivered. Convincing myself it was the breeze, I rolled up my window and turned forward to stare out the windshield. Before us lay an empty road with older homes lining the side walked street. Black wreathes were hung over bio-hazard tape honoring the family's dead. Jasper rolled to a stop in what was once a town square. Mom-and-pop type shops lined the street on either side. To our right was a pharmacy, a consignment store and a card store. To our left there was a large hardware store wedged between a sub shop and a bank. From where we sat, the stores seemed intact. There was no lingering evidence of the social unrest that had destroyed Atlanta. It was like the inhabitants had just disappeared.

We exited the truck, our slamming doors echoing off the store fronts around us. I had an urge to yell out 'Hello'. I wanted to announce our presence and ask forgiveness for what we were about to do even though it was obvious no one would hear. I told myself it was this or die. The people who ran these stores were long gone, leaving everything behind. It was now ours for the taking and no one would judge us.

We all stood by the car taking in the sights around us before grouping around Jasper. Once we were together, Jasper began walking and we followed him into the hardware store. Emmett grabbed a dolly cart and began pushing it down the first aisle. The cart wobbled and no matter how hard Emmett tried to keep it straight it veered right. His rising aggravation caused Bella to giggle between us.

Jasper loaded the cart with bags of seed and organic fertilizer. We continued to the back of the store and reached the gun counter. Emmett left the cart and walked quickly behind the counter.

"You can never have too much ammo." he said as he grabbed several boxes of bullets and grinned widely.

We returned to our car and loaded our supplies. Jasper wanted to go into the sub shop to search their potential back stock while Bella and I were excited about what the pharmacy could offer. Another hour and several trips back and forth between the stores and the truck, we had accumulated quite a stash of vitamins and common over the counter medications and I had a large box full of disposable razors. Bella gathered every box of tampons and attempted to discreetly pack them into the back of the truck.

Our group climbed into the car once again to venture farther from the tiny town square.

We traveled the silent streets through more residential areas. Entire neighborhoods had been blocked off with ropes and quarantine signs fluttered in the wind. The houses around here could just as easily offer the safety and resources we needed. We never discussed it but I'm sure we all felt the same. Moving into somebody's home and using their belongings would have felt wrong.

We had passed several neighborhoods when Jasper noticed the familiar school zone signs. We pulled into the parking lot of the small high school intent on finding the cafeteria and hopefully more ready made foods.

We wandered the empty hallways, our footfalls echoing off the lockers. Several times we stopped to strain our ears over an imagined sound.

We finally reached the heavy double doors to the cafeteria and made our way through the maze of tables towards the kitchen/storage area. We were all hoping for an overflowing pantry so what we found was seriously disappointing. Jasper theorized that the lack of food was due to parents pulling their children out of schools. The decreasing number of students meant not as much food was needed.

"At least," he said shrugging, "that's what happened in our town."

Jasper and Emmett grabbed what little there was and we all began to make our way back to the Land Rover.

As we exited the cafeteria a door across the hallway caught my eye and I made my way over to the empty classroom.

"I'll catch up in a minute." I said.

"We need to stay together," insisted Emmett. "We don't need to lose anyone."

"I can see the truck through there." I argued pointing to a large window.

"I'll stay with him." Bella spoke up "Go put the food up and we'll be right out."

Jasper and Emmett hesitated but turned and hurried back to the truck.

I rolled my eyes at them and their overly cautious actions. The town was obviously empty. We'd been here all day and hadn't seen anyone. I turned back to the door before me.

The plaque along the wall read Mr. Banner - Biology. I opened the door slowly as if something would jump out at me once it was opened. We walked into the room and looked around at the lab tables. Every table sat empty except for one microscope in the center. I walked from desk to desk looking reverently at the old microscopes that brought out the nagging pull that led me into my profession. My resolve to try and move forward was so new that just being in this biology classroom in a small abandoned town made it waver. I wandered around the room, not really sure what I was looking for. Bella followed behind me looking around the room and picking up random displays on the shelves.

"I'm not sure what you're looking for," Bella said as she came up beside me and read the side of the book I was holding, "but if you need a book titled 'Biology: The Easy Way,' I'd say I know what your problem is with the vaccine."

I gave her a wry smile and put the book back.

She continued to look over the books encased in the shelves and I once again began to wander the classroom opening what turned out to be a closet and several cabinets.

"Hey look at this." I called to Bella as I stepped through another doorway.

"I thought this was another closet." she said as she followed behind me and glanced around. Posters of various virus anatomies lined one wall from floor to ceiling. Bookshelves stood against the other walls overflowing with huge books and reports.

I muttered to myself as I read the titles encased in another bookshelf.

"Edward," Bella began before I interrupted with a loud "What the FUCK?"

Bella dropped the book she had been holding and rushed over to see me staring incredulously at a bound report from the CDC.

"This was classified..." I trailed off, and as I flipped through the contents I noticed a web address printed on the bottom of every page.

_thetruflu(.)com_

"Dr. Edward Masen," she read standing beside me, "Did you write this?" She asked.

"No, my father did." I answered stonily. "We received this information the week after he died."

I looked up into her wide eyes and shook my head at her silent questions. I wasn't ready to talk about my father yet.

I grabbed the report and ushered her out the door. I stopped at the last lab table, put a box of slides in my pocket, and grabbed the microscope. I wrapped the cord around the base and tucked it under my arm.

"What are you going to do with that?" Bella asked, trying to be the voice of reason.

I was trying to think of a response as I continued to move us out of the classroom when we heard the unmistakable blast of a shot gun.

Bella began running, immediately making her way out of the building and towards the car where Emmett and Jasper were waiting.

I raced after her openly cursing her serious lack of self-preservation. I saw the scene unfolding through the evenly spaced windows leading down the hall. Jasper and Emmett stood beside our car. Emmett had his gun trained on a strange man. The barrel of the stranger's shot gun was smoking as he waved it around haphazardly while his face twisted in rage. I felt a sudden protective urge course through me as Bella halted only a few feet from the altercation, finally taking in the scene before her.

The angry man turned towards Bella as I came to stand beside her. Jasper, noticing the turn of attention, began slowly moving towards us in a protective measure. The man leered at Bella and licked his lips as he shuffled closer. I immediately decided he must be deranged to approach a woman protected by three men, two of whom were armed.

He looked between Emmett and Jasper and wheezed out a sick laugh.

"My gun's bigger baby." he snarled, causing Bella's eyes to widen before she jutted her chin in defiance, no doubt formulating a biting retort. I placed my free hand on her arm and squeezed trying to get her to swallow her words.

"What do you want?" Jasper asked, trying to distract the renegade.

"Are you all getting some? I bet she's good..." he moaned reaching down to rub his crotch.

"That's enough." Jasper growled. "You can take whatever food we have."

"But hurry." Emmett interrupted as he cocked his gun and aimed it at the man.

The man thought for a moment then began to walk around us to the truck as we watched him wearily. I was still holding Bella's arm and despite the stoic look on her face she was trembling.

When he reached Bella's side, he lunged at her and she screamed, jerking her hand away from me ready to defend herself. A single shot erupted beside me and the man fell to his knees with a small hole oozing red between his eyes. Jasper grabbed Bella and turned her into his chest to protect her from the sight as the man slowly fell forward.

I stood dumbly holding the microscope and bootleg copy of my father's report taking in the scene before me.

Emmett walked over to the body and removed the gun from its side and checked the pockets for bullets.

Jasper continued to hold Bella against him as she cried into his shirt.

"Let's go." Emmett said, his voice dead.

"We can't just leave him here." I said surprised at Emmett's callous demeanor.

"He came at us, unprovoked. He almost assaulted Bella." Emmett explained his temper flaring. "I'm not breaking a sweat over that animal," he spat.

I sat my belongings down and began to rummage through his pockets looking for ID of any kind. I came up empty but noticed a small bag laying a few yards away. The contents were meager and offered no further insight into our stranger. I concluded he must have been a drifter with no ties to this community.

I turned back to Emmett and Jasper, pleading with my eyes. Emmett wouldn't look at me. Instead he reached for Bella, crooning softly to her as he took her into his arms and gently guided her to the car.

Jasper searched the trunk and grabbed a shovel. Together we took turns digging a hole for the nameless man. As I dug, I warred with myself over right and wrong. I didn't think I could stand by and watch the break down of societal norms because there was no outside influence enforcing them. We'd been lucky enough to find Jasper and we benefited from his resourcefulness. Would we have become monsters if we'd had to wander alone and hungry never feeling safe enough to stay in one place?

The ride back to the camp was tense and silent. The only noises were the tires on the road and Bella's occasional sniffs.

As we came through the large wooden gates that surrounded our home, the others were waiting to give a hero's welcome. Their smiles fell when they saw the four of us climb out of the car, broken once again by the horrors witnessed on the outside.

**~*~*~*~*~*~**

**A/N**: *waves* Hi! Another HUGE week for The Colony!

First, **MASSIVE** love and thanks for my readers and reviewers. seriously. The response to this little fic amazes me and I appreciate the alerts and encouragement.

**ScarlettLetters** rec'd The Colony on **Wild Swan. **Dude, I died. If you haven't read it, go do it now. ;)

**PoetrytoProse** from **lion_lamb** on LJ rec'd The Colony and I squeed. Loudly.

**Kassiah** and **RedVelvetHeaven **gave another nod on **Fictionators(.)com**. I'm still squeeing. js.

And last but not least, I have a rec : This fic pwns me so fucking hard and sends me into fits of fangirl. *fans self*

**Alton House ****by velvetglo**

Summary: Thoroughly modern Bella Swan wakes up in 1815 and discovers polite society isn't always as it appears. Do reformed rakes make the best husbands? This bawdy romp through Regency England is rated M for stylized metaphoric 18th C. lemons


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer still owns it all.**

**Bublichka is THE BEST BETA. EVER. **

**Chapter 11**

**BPOV**

There was a flurry of activity and voices ran together as we exited the Land Rover. Apparently our faces gave them the impression that our trip had been chaotic. I'd managed to settle myself in the car but I was sure my eyes were puffy and my nose was red. _I never was a pretty crier_, I thought to myself. I made a noise between a snort and a sniffle at my train of thought. Emmett had just _killed_ someone and here I was lamenting over how I looked when I cried. I replayed the execution in my mind over and over and wondered if that was how my dad looked when he was shot. That man's face had registered surprise for the briefest second before his face went blank. _It's not how big your gun is after all _I thought wryly.

Carlisle must have noticed my smirk and blank stare because he was beside me in an instant quietly saying my name and asking if I was OK. I allowed my eyes to slowly meet his finally seeing his concern over me and his relief that we had come back at least physically unharmed.

"All you did was fucking stand there like a pussy holding your microscope." Emmett screamed in response to Edward's attempts to talk over him with his version of what happened.

Apparently the retelling wasn't going very well and Carlisle was finally distracted from me as we made our way to the group.

"At least I'm doing MY job." Emmett finished red faced.

Edward's eyes went wide and he looked as though he would walk away but he stopped, and with the full force of his weight swung at Emmett, hitting him squarely in the jaw.

In an instant Jasper and Carlisle were between them arms raised and hands pressed against heaving chests.

"We've had enough violence for one day." Jasper said looking at Emmett pointedly.

"Fuck you Jasper." Emmett spat "What were you going to do? Try to talk him out of it as he attacked Bella?"

Jasper shook his head as he turned to lead Edward away to separate the two men who were more at war with themselves than each other.

I stood silently watching the group split. Esme and Alice walked to the main house to begin preparing dinner while Carlisle stood in front of a now sitting Emmett examining his swollen jaw. Rosalie stood aside looking unsure and probably wondering if sides had been chosen and which one she was on.

I wondered that myself and it surprised me.

I returned to the truck and began digging around for the large first aid kit. It was one of several we had found offered in the hunting section of the hardware store. As the men ogled and gathered the bows, arrows, knives and a new rifle, I grabbed the large boxes and added them to our pile.

I finally found it and opened it to search for the Instant Ice.

I bent it until I heard the crack of the solid mass which caused a chemical reaction turning it to a liquid which began to chill my hand. I made my way over to Emmett and passed the pack to Carlisle. I brought the other one over to the lake where Jasper was keeping watch over Edward. Edward was attempting to skip rocks with his left hand while he cradled his right against his chest.

I came up beside Edward and tentatively reached for his injured hand. He winced and sucked in a quick breath as I manually flexed his fingers. His knuckles had begun to swell and bruise.

"Can you move them by yourself?" I asked my voice barely above a whisper.

He nodded as he wiggled his fingers slowly against my palm. I held his hand in mine and gently placed the ice pack on his fist.

Edward brought his hand back against his chest and bent to pick up more rocks and sullenly began throwing them. I watched him for several moments before I spoke.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

He took a deep breath and exhaled forcefully before he said "No".

I sensed the return of his self loathing and although I thought he should talk about it, I let it go. I turned and began walking toward Jasper who had moved away but not left us completely alone.

Jasper reached over and wrapped his arm around my shoulder and I in turn put my arm around his waist and gave a gentle squeeze.

"Thank you." I said and he looked down on me kindly.

"I did what I could." he said shrugging "I couldn't have gotten to my gun quick enough anyway."

My mouth dropped as the shock over his confession registered. He had seemed just as upset as Edward over the situation.

"All life is precious." He said answering my questioning stare. "But I won't hesitate if my family is threatened."

I looked down as the weight of his words settled on my mind and I noticed that for the first time since my father's death I felt comfortable with someone looking out for me and I welcomed it. I'd still insist on being treated as an equal but accepting protection when I need it didn't make me feel weak anymore.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

We settled around the fire outside once again to share a meal. Emmett and Edward sat across from each other and occasionally looked up from their plate to steal a glance. The air was heavy as everyone was still trying to come to terms with the day's events.

Edward and Emmett spoke at the same time addressing each other.

"Look man," Emmett said starting over "I'm sorry about what I said. It was low."

Edward nodded his head in acceptance. "I'm sorry too...about hitting you."

I thought about what had happened today and I tried to come up with an appropriate response to express my gratitude to Emmett. It wasn't OK to thank Emmett for killing that man but I did appreciate his actions to protect me.

"Um, Em?" I began "I...uh...I'm glad you were with us today."

Emmett fixed his eyes on the fire and I saw the unshed tears glistening. He cleared his throat that was now thick with emotion.

"I wasn't enough for my wife and son before..." He began quietly and Rosalie gasped beside him. Emmett looked over at her and reached for her hand. He gave it a gentle squeeze but didn't let go.

"I was such a dick when I left. She was scared and I brushed her off...I didn't _know."_ he admitted as he choked back a sob.

Emmett brought his empty hand up and grabbed his head, flexing his fingers into his hair. We waited while he composed himself.

"I got a call a week later. It happened so fast. They were gone within days." He looked up then, at us all, the burden of his guilt finally showing through the jovial front he usually presented.

"When I saw that vagrant go after Bella, I just...snapped. All this anger was there and then I shot him." He finished in almost a whisper. "I can't bring any of them back. But I can make sure I keep you all safe. You're all my family now and I would do anything for you."

We looked around at each other as he spoke. Every one of us felt the same way and appreciated Emmett finally voicing it. We were all connected now by the losses in our past, the turmoil of our present, and the hope for our future.

The moment ended and conversation began to flow freely between everyone once again. I moved to stand and clear away the dinner mess but Edward reached up and took hold of my fingers keeping me from rising completely.

"Will you come back?" he asked.

"Sure." I answered and he smiled and released my hand.

I brought the used plates to the table where Esme had set up two buckets for washing. We stood next to each other, she washed and I rinsed and dried, while we chatted about her day.

Our drama had overshadowed the work they were able to accomplish together and I felt bad. Before we had left, plans for a small garden had begun, and Carlisle, Esme, Rosalie, and Alice had measured an area to use and had begun to clear it. Her pride was evident and she joked about how surprising it was to be turned on by watching Carlisle getting sweaty.

"Ew," I responded to her flushed cheeks "that's like hearing about you parents..." and we laughed together at her indignation that they were not that old.

As we finished up and carried the clean dishes back to the kitchen Esme turned serious.

"Are you OK, Bella?" she asked as we set the plates down and she turned towards me.

A lone tear fell, betraying my bravado, and Esme wrapped her arms around me and held me tight.

"I thought I had seen everything, that nothing could shock me again." I said against her shoulder. "I wasn't scared for myself. I knew I was safe. But I was scared one of them would get hurt." I ended, surprised at my revelation.

She nodded her head in understanding and held me at arms length to look at me. I looked down still not used to these intense emotions. The warmth elicited by the bond of friendship, family and love surrounded me and I cried in relief.

~*~*~*~*~*~

We walked back to the common area arm in arm. Esme gave me one last hug before she continued on to her cabin and I walked towards where Edward sat beginning his shift. He was on the largest seat closest to the fire leaning over to read by the firelight. He had a quilt draped around his shoulders and I noticed another quilt folded beside him and I smiled knowing it was for me.

I cleared my throat as I approached so I didn't startle him but his hand still reached for the gun at his side as he looked in my direction.

He scoffed at himself and apologized for being jumpy while he handed me the extra quilt. I sat next to him trying to read but it was difficult without sitting too close. I moved closer and looked up at him apologetically as my chest pressed against his arm jostling the papers he held. He smiled and brought it closer to me so we could both see. I felt Edward shift beside me as he brought his arm from between us, wrapping it instead around my waist, bringing me even closer. I felt my heart begin to race and a heated blush crept up from my chest. My eyes widened and I whipped my head up to look at him.

"I'm not...I just...Can you see better now?" He finally asked in response to my incredulous stare.

I nodded, eyes still wide, trying to calm my thundering heart.

He snickered and went back to reading so I followed his example.

The 'report' was professionally bound and looked legitimate, but was written in a very simple way. It was surprisingly void of the medical jargon used when speaking to colleagues. Edward became lost in the text and was no longer waiting for me to keep up as he flipped through the pages. He huffed several times and his warm breath fluffed my hair and sent chills down my spine. Soon he was muttering to himself and I listened to the rumbling it caused in his chest. I took a deep breath and reveled in his musky scent as my body relaxed into him. I felt my eyelids close against the words in front of me and my head leaned farther over until it was resting against the front of his shoulder. He absentmindedly rubbed his thumb against my hip as he read.

Hours later I jolted awake in my bed wondering how I got there. I rubbed my eyes and looked across the dark room to find the silhouette of Edward lying with his head propped up, watching me.

"I'm sorry." I whispered sleepily "did I wake you?"

"S'ok" he mumbled "Are you alright?"

I nodded my head and wrapped my arms around my knees, as I brought them up, I watched Edward walk over and sit next to me on my bed.

"I'm good. Are you OK after reading the report?" I asked feeling bad that I had fallen asleep on him as he read.

"I think so...the part my dad wrote wasn't new to me, but the rest was just a bunch of conspiracy theories."

"Will it help to have your dad's report?"

"Help me with what? My father was a brilliant man and even he couldn't figure it out."

"Well, maybe you won't feel so responsible. If he was so brilliant and couldn't figure it out..."

Edward rubbed his hands over his face, in what I assumed was frustration with my questioning.

"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to upset you." I whispered

"No, it's not you Bella. I'm just so desperate for some new piece of information that even the conspiracy theories seemed reasonable." He shook his head as he gave a dry laugh and continued.

"There's a whole section on how the government caused the outbreak and was hiding the vaccine and there's another one that claims a genetic mutation causes immunity." I stayed quiet beside him just listening.

"I'm beginning to think Carlisle was right," he finally admitted into the silence that stretched before us, "Maybe there is no answer...no quick fix. But I feel like I'm giving up if I acknowledge it."

I put my head against his shoulder and rubbed my hand along his back in a comforting gesture. He was wrestling with demons I would never know and in that moment it was all I could do for him.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

**A/N:** Short one this week. I promise.

Much Love to all my readers and reviewers ;) You all pwn me.

To my greatest supporters...you should know who you are by now...Thank you for your faith in me and hand holding when I get all emo.

Since I know you're all reading **Alton House** by **Velvetglo**...(RIGHT???)

I have another fic to rec. It made me laugh so hard I damn near peed myself: **It isn't stalking if you don't get caught **by **JustForkIt.** Edward, Emmett and Jasper are fanboys...It's just WIN all around :)


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns it.**

**Bublichka, my beta, owns me.**

**Chapter 12**

**BPOV**

When Edward returned to his bed, I sank back beneath my covers and rubbed my feet in the warm spot his body had left behind. I reveled in the sensation of comforting him. I had placed my arms around him in a mothering way and was surprised when I began to feel the calm again that led me to fall asleep against him at the fire. I drifted off to sleep still feeling the shape of his torso wrapped in my arms.

The next morning we began what would be become our daily routine and carry us through the next few months. The only 'set' chores were patrol and meals but our days were filled with busy work to keep us occupied and prepare for the coming months.  
We worked in the garden, took inventory of our stock of food, water and other supplies, we chopped wood and cleaned clothing and bedding.

On one particular day at the end of June, after the chores were finished, Alice surprised me when she announced that the ladies should learn how to use a gun 'just in case', and then took it upon herself to teach us. That night, we left the men to prepare dinner, and had a 'girl's night out' of sorts, trading funny stories and gossiping about the men as we practiced our aim. It was relaxing and empowering after the monotony of the past several weeks and it gave me a new view of Alice. Her quiet, subservient demeanor was a front that hid the capable woman inside.

The hot Georgia summer was upon us as the bottled water ran out and Jasper's supply of water purifying tablet began to dwindle maintaining a supply of drinking water had become our focus. Jasper and Emmett spoke one night around the fire of a rudimentary technique of purifying large amounts of water at one time. Their elaborate yet simple plan would necessitate a trip to the stables to look for plastic barrels as well as a search of the surrounding area for the other supplies.

Jasper explained the process in greater detail to us as we sat together that night. Two plastic barrels would act like a large Brita filter. Charcoal in the top barrel would filter the water we poured in and would drain out the holes in the bottom into the barrel below, removing enough impurities to make even the lake water drinkable.

The following day our group took an expedition to the stables. I tripped and stumbled over the underbrush causing Edward to lurch forward repeatedly trying to break my inevitable fall. Everyone in the group had been caught up in their own conversations and didn't notice as we fell behind.

"We'll never get there at this rate." Edward huffed in annoyance as he righted me for the third time in five minutes.

I stared down the path at the retreating forms of the group.

"Just go ahead." I said, equally annoyed at my seeming incompetence to walk in the woods.

"I'm not...I'm sorry." he stammered. "I'm not mad at _you_."

"Whatever." I said petulantly not looking at him.

He came around to stand in front of me and lowered himself to his knees on the ground.

"Hop on." he said and even though I couldn't see his face I knew he was smirking.

I gently brought my legs around him and threaded my arms across his shoulders.

"Don't choke me." he teased as he stood and began walking.

His hands gripped my thighs and the pressure created a slow heat that built and spread through my body, causing me to tighten my hold around his neck.

When we caught up at the stables, I dismounted and we stood motionless beside each other, calming our labored breathing while we watched the others milling around. My legs still felt the heat of his absent hands as I tried to reign in the desire that manifested from our physical contact. This feeling was so new and so strong, that I struggled to keep myself from launching myself back into his arms. Once I felt in control of myself I turned to him. He stood beside me, his hand woven into the hair at the base of his neck, and when our eyes met he looked down sheepishly.

Whatever pull we had been feeling was broken when a dirty saddle blanket hit the side of my head seconds before I heard Emmett yell, "Catch Bella!"

I let it slide from my shoulder as I held my breath and turned to glare at Emmett. The force of the hit loosened the hair I had placed in a sloppy bun and several small pieces of straw now littered the strands hanging down. Emmett laughed loudly at his prank and my resulting appearance.

I walked slowly over to him, my face set, trying hard not to give into the giggles that threatened to escape and betray me.

I stood toe-to-toe with the gentle giant and he lowered his head to hear me while his shoulders shook with the laughter he was now repressing.

"You have to sleep sometime." I whispered menacingly.

He stopped laughing and his cocky smile faded as he took in the meaning of my words.

I succumbed to my giggles and walked over to the rest of the group, Emmett trailed behind me calling out, "Bella? Bella, it was just a joke..." but I ignored him, relishing the apprehension I heard in his voice as he continued to apologize.

While exploring the stables we were able to find more buckets and the two empty barrels we needed plus a few more that we could place under the cabins' gutters to collect rainwater.

Several days later, while getting a bucket of water from the well, Emmett discovered two old fishing poles and put it on himself to catch dinner that night. He announced that he was sick of dried meat, and after checking under several rocks and gathering a few worms he climbed into the little boat tied to the dock and rowed to the middle of the lake. Several hours later a discouraged Emmett returned with four tiny fish and angry red shoulders. By dinner time Emmett could barely move due to the pain of his sunburn.

Carlisle took pity on him and cleaned the fish while Esme cooked his catch. Emmett insisted we all have some to justify his efforts. We passed the plate around, each of us only able to take one bite, and praised Emmett on his ability to catch the best tasting fish we'd ever had. It was also decided that first thing in the morning Jasper, and whoever wanted to, would go into the woods and hunt small game.

Around nine pm everyone headed off to their beds and Edward and I settled in for 'Our Shift', as I had begun to call it. We had begun a close friendship, using our time alone to get to know each other. Most of that time was spent discussing favorite books and movies, talking about the goings on in our little group, and laughing over Emmett and Rose's obvious infatuation with each other that neither were acting on. Recently, we had begun to plot with Jasper, Alice, Carlisle, and Esme to throw them together in hope that one of them would crack and put us all out of our misery. By the end of our night we somehow ended up sitting on the ground with me curled into his side and him idly playing with my hands.

"I wonder what will happen to the single's cabin if they hook up?" Edward asked, his brow furrowed in concentration as he placed our palms together and measured our fingers.

"Ew, did you just say 'hook up'? I don't want that mental picture..." I said, feigning disgust, and he laughed beside me.

"I guess it will become a den of sin then..." I said jokingly and he jumped up and began making his way to the cabin.

"Where are you going?" I called out after him.

"I'm going to rearrange furniture." he said as if it was obvious.

"It was a joke, you ass!" I laughed and he turned to come back.

He settled himself behind me and pulled me into his lap and wrapped his arms tightly around me when I shivered against the heated contact of his chest.

The playful banter between us had been our way of avoiding the tension we both felt whenever we were around each other. I could sense Edward was near before I actually saw him. His proximity would send pin-prick sensations to the part of my body he was closest to. We unknowingly gravitated towards each other and we were never more than an arm's length away. In this moment while he held me close, his face buried into the crook of my neck, I had never felt more connected with anyone in my life and I no longer felt the need to fight it

At the end of our shift Carlisle stood by the fire like a watchful father as Edward and I returned to our cabin holding hands.

**~*~*~*~*~*~**

After a large breakfast of powdered eggs and more beef jerky, Jasper, Emmett and Edward headed into the woods, promising to return with enough fresh meat for everyone.

Carlisle hooked up the small generator to the refrigerator in anticipation of using it to temporarily store the meat as it was cut and boiled a large pot of water to pour over the stainless steel workbench in an attempt to disinfect it. He also boiled several of the new hunting knives.

As Carlisle prepared the kitchen, Alice showed us how to preserve the vegetables we had grown. Our early planting in April and constant tending had produced an abundance of various produce. Jasper had managed to find just enough ingredients needed for Alice to prepare and can several batches of pickled cucumbers and tomatoes. These would be saved for the fall and winter to use when our fresh supply of produce had run out.

Once Rosalie and Esme had the canning under control, Alice and I gathered all the dirty linens and brought them to the lake shore to do laundry. While we usually never did this chore in the water we were using it more as a means to keep cool while we worked. We set the pile on the dock and waded into the cool water knee deep and began the arduous task.

As we each took a sheet and began washing, seemingly lost in our own thoughts, I realized that Alice and I had never really spoken to each before. We would contribute to large conversations within the group but had never engaged each other one-on-one. I decided to open myself up to her and hesitantly addressed her.

"So, Alice."

"Yes, Bella?" she answered, smiley brightly.

"What did you do before all this?" I asked gesturing to our campsite.

"I was a teacher." She answered and her smile faltered minutely.

"Oh." I said dumbly, thinking this may not be a pleasant topic to discuss.

Alice seemed to notice my discomfort and playfully flicked water at me.

"Hey," she said, "it's alright. Yes, it makes me sad but I've come to peace with it. We're all here for a reason. Jasper and I are survivors because we were needed to help y'all adjust. I can't believe in coincidence anymore."

"What about the rest of us?" I asked not entirely convinced by her talk of destiny.

"Well," she started, placing a finger to her chin while she thought. "Emmett and Rosalie are here to help each other heal. Carlisle survived because we might need a doctor one day. Esme is here for maternal comfort. And you," she paused, "are here for Edward and he is here for you."

I scoffed at her then. "I can see your views on the others, but whatever friendship or possible romance Edward and I build is just a product of our environment. We've been thrown together and bonded over a common experience. Throw in a little chemistry and that's us. We're not some preordained match made in heaven."

"You'll see." she said and gave me a knowing wink.

We finished up our washing in companionable silence. The methodical actions of washing and wringing helping me escape into my mind.

"Ladies!" We heard Emmett boom from the forest edge "the men have returned from the hunt."

We laughed and I shook my head at Emmett's antics as we maneuvered towards shore and collected the laundry from the dock.

We made our way to the open area between the cabins to hang the wet sheets to dry. I was fixing a small rag to the line we had hung when I felt Edward come to stand beside me. I turned toward him and took in his appearance. He was incredibly sweaty and had several smudges of dirt along his chin and forehead. His cheeks were flushed and the redness made his eyes seem brighter. He brought a dirty hand up and ran it through his hair before he reached up with his other hand and presented me with a single daisy.

I felt my cheeks burn at the sweetness of his gesture. Before I could reach for it, he brought it up and placed it behind my ear brushing his thumb across my cheek as he lowered his hand.

My hand replaced his on my cheek and I watched as he went to help Carlisle prepare the meat they had caught.

I turned towards Alice's giggle and saw her tapping her temple in a gesture of 'I told you so'.

I lowered my face into the wet towel I held to hide my goofy grin and blush and shook my head as Alice continued to chuckle across from me.

**~*~*~*~*~*~**

We had been adapting to this new lifestyle for months, becoming acclimated to cold baths, manually flushing toilets and kerosene lamps. Our chores changed from necessary nuisances to daily life. We established a fluency in our days taking care of our responsibilities in an efficient manner and the remainder of our free time enjoying the amenities as the summer grew hotter. Life in our little colony became our new normal and we all held to the belief that we had prepared ourselves and our group for whatever may come and we finally felt safe.

**A/N: **This chapter... Ya'll, I was this close to throwing my computer through the wall.

Thank you all so much for your love and recs!

Here's a fic that owned me this week:

_**15 step**_ by _**Jenny Jerkface**_. It's not your average HS fic. I hurt for this Bella.


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight.**

**My beta, Bublichka, owns me.**

**Chapter 13**

**EPOV**

I stumbled around in the pre-dawn darkness and grabbed my jeans from the empty bunk above me. I pulled them on, not even needing to unbutton them. I had always been slim, but our limited diet and almost constant physical activity had hardened my muscles, creating the deep V now barely hidden by my drooping pants.

I looked over at Bella's sleeping form. She was curled up under her covers; her hands joined together, and nestled under her chin. I imagined what it would feel like to be curled against her back and had to shake my head to clear the vision and the resulting feelings it caused. I slipped quietly from the cabin intent on beginning my day alone, chopping wood, and desperately trying to loosen the hold Bella had over me. I picked up the ax, the handle slick with the morning dew. I wiped it and my hands of their moisture. A slight slip and small cut could easily become infected and even deadly in our environment.

I welcomed the burn as my tight shoulders loosened with every swing while I began taking my sexual frustrations out on the unassuming logs.

Before long Emmett joined me and I begrudgingly handed over the ax, knowing he suffered like me.

"Dude," he started once we had a large pile between us "something's gotta give."

I sighed in empathy and sat beside him, wiping the sweat from my eyes. Our conversations post wood chopping always began this way. We'd discuss our growing attraction to Rosalie and Bella but never resolve anything. I knew Emmett had kissed Rosalie but felt hesitant about moving forward because of their pasts. They had each lost spouses and children and neither of them were sure how to proceed in this new life.

Emmett clapped me on the back as he stood to join Jasper on the hunt and I was left once again to my thoughts of Bella.

The smell of coffee lured me away from the woodpile and I watched the sun rise as I drank. Our days usually began in animated conversation while we prepared for the day's labors. Today we moved at an almost reverent pace. It was the 4th of July and we had decided to put aside the chores and celebrate life. Bella came and leaned against me. I reached over and pulled her closer to me, enjoying the calm that spread through me with her touch.

***~*~*~*~*~***

Bella lay beside me on the beach in a white wife beater and cut off shorts soaking up the sun's rays. I lay on my side watching her surreptitiously. She sighed in contentment as she dug her toes in the sand around our blanket. The other couples around us mirrored our position.

We had all gathered on the beach trying to recreate a time long gone when carefree holidays were spent lazing around and eating too much barbecue.

Jasper and Emmett's hunt had gone well this morning and in no time they were rewarded with a large buck. They carried it back to camp triumphantly and we had immediately begun to prepare it for that night's celebration.

It was now roasting slowly over the large fire we created in its honor.

I rolled over to my back, feeling sweat trail from my forehead into my hair line. I ran a hand through the unruly mop, scratching absentmindedly. My gaze returned to Bella and our eyes met. I felt like a teenager with the amount of pure sexual tension that seemed to surround us lately, causing us to stare longer and find ways to touch each other. She licked her lips and I almost groaned out loud imagining how it would feel to finally kiss her. We had come so close several times but I held off, afraid that when I did finally kiss her I wouldn't be able to stop. I had never let myself get so close to anyone. Learning from my childhood, and watching my mother struggle with her loneliness, I swore I wouldn't subject anyone to that pain. But I was no longer tied down to the obligations of my past profession. It was a freeing feeling and I transferred my passion into creating and providing for my new family. And I let myself love.

"I'm hot." Bella whispered fanning herself, breaking me out of my thoughts.

I leaned over placing my mouth inches away from her and gently blew a cooling breath from her ear to her throat. She shivered and I watched goose bumps erupt on her arms and her nipples tighten under the thin shirt she wore.

She glared at me but the desire was unmistakable in her eyes.

Without a word I picked her up and carried her into the lake while she screamed, then laughed as I dropped her into the water.

"You said you were hot." I said, sticking out my lower lip in a pout when she sputtered to the surface. As she stood, revealing her upper body, I realized my mistake.

I would no longer have to rely on my imagination and this time I did groan out loud as I stared at the wet fabric clinging to her breasts.

"Serves you right." she muttered trying to pull the fabric away from her chest while looking around to see if anyone was watching.

In that moment the physical desire to just take her was so strong that I pulled her to me, dying to taste her lips at last. Her lips parted in surprise and I slowly lowered my head, intent on sucking the lake water from her lips and any other place she'd let me.

Her hands flew to my chest and her eyes widened before fluttering closed as she realized my intent.

Each of us leaned forward at an agonizing pace, inches seemed more like miles as my anticipation grew.

As soon as our lips met I was lost to her.

Her warmth and her scent surrounded me. I felt only her pressed against me and I heard only my heartbeat as it matched hers in tempo.

_I was right_, I thought, _I can't ever stop now_.

Bella brought her arms up to wrap them around my neck as she pressed herself closer. She gave a small sigh against my lips and I took the chance to push farther, lightly licking her bottom lip. She took the invitation and opened her mouth to me and we moaned in unison at the added sensation.

In the midst of all this I had forgotten where we were and that we had an audience. Bella began to pull away giggling and I finally became aware of our surroundings.

Emmett was whistling and shouting from shore.

"Yeah baby!" he yelled before Rosalie reached over and cuffed him in the back of the head.

"Ow!" He yelled like a petulant child and I watched as Rosalie spoke to him, her face animated and her hands flailing. I didn't have to hear what she was saying because the look on Emmett's face said it all.

When she had her say, Emmett looked out towards us once again and shouted "Sorry" before lying back down next to Rosalie.

Carlisle and Esme were pretending to read while Jasper and Alice were 'watching' the clouds in an attempt to be oblivious to the display before them.

Bella's amused giggles quickly became a full laugh and I pulled her to me once again, reveling in the high of our first kiss.

We stayed in the water for over an hour playing chicken with Emmett and Rosalie or just enjoying the cool water in each other's arms stealing small kisses and hugs. Carlisle and Emmett raced Jasper and me from the dock to the middle of the lake while the girls cheered us on.

That night we sat around the fire tired but happy from the sun and water play. Jasper had apparently been holding out on us as he slipped away to his cabin and returned a few minutes later with a guitar and a bottle of slightly opaque liquid which he held up in triumph.

"I've been saving this for a special occasion." Jasper said as he sat down and uncorked the bottle.

"Is that... moonshine, Jasper?" asked Esme

"Yup, 99 proof," he responded with a small chuckle and sniffed the top "Peach I believe."

I looked at the faces around me, each one showing hesitant excitement.

Emmett quickly drained the last of his water and presented his empty cup to Jasper and we all imitated him as Jasper poured the first shot.

Once everyone had a cup, Jasper raised his in a toast and smirked.

"Happy Fourth of July." he said.

We all threw our heads back and drank. It was pleasantly sweet but caused a slow burn as it hit my stomach and spread quickly to my limbs making me feel deeply relaxed. I leisurely lolled my head towards Bella to take in her reaction.

She was staring at me with a dopey grin on her face, her body slack, and her eyes glassy. I snorted and she dissolved into a fit of giggles.

Jasper seemed the least affected as he offered everyone another shot. Carlisle declined but everyone else held their cups forward and Jasper emptied the bottle between the seven of us.

I gave no thought to the splitting headache that would bless us all in the morning. I raised my glass and drained every last bit of moonshine before slipping off my seat, leaning my head back against my abandoned perch, and watching the stars spin.

I felt Bella come to sit beside me and wrap her arms around my waist as Jasper began to strum the opening to _Falling Slowly_.

I began placing kisses in Bella's hair and when she raised her face to me I kissed each eyelid, her nose and finally her lips. I'd never known such contentment and prayed that nothing would challenge that.

Several hours later we doused the flames and retreated to our beds still feeling light from our imbibing.

The full moon filtered through the windows, illuminating the cabin's interior, and bathing everything in a silver sheen. I gave Bella a chaste kiss by her bed, afraid of losing myself once again. The combination of her sweet lips and the peach moonshine had my defenses weakened and I'm pretty sure Emmett and Rosalie would not appreciate me acting on the thoughts that had been racing through my head most of the night.

I stripped down to my boxers and climbed into bed. The day's activities and fireside festivities had me dozing before long. I was hovering on the edge of sleep when I felt the bed dip beside me and felt Bella slide under my sheet and curl herself around me.

"I need you." she whispered into my neck before her breaths evened out and she fell asleep.

I laid there shell shocked and wondering what she meant exactly before deciding that, hangover or no, I would be chopping wood in the morning.

***~*~*~*~*~*~***

The bunk beds were made for one person.

A small person.

A wayward spring poked my kidney, my arm had lost feeling beneath Bella long ago, and my head throbbed. I opened an eye to find an amused Rosalie looking at us tangled on the narrow mattress.

"Good afternoon, sleeping beauties." she smirked.

Bella groaned beside me and shushed Rosalie while trying to turn away from her, almost kneeing me in the groin in the process.

I tried my best to climb over Bella without jostling her and stumbled towards the toilets, my eyes half closed.

I would never deny Bella my bed, but we needed to figure a better way to sleep together. If she wanted to continue. Her last words before she fell asleep were haunting me and I wondered if her actions were alcohol induced.

"Too much thinking." I whined and ambled back towards the bed for my pants.

I joined the group as they sat around the picnic table nursing their coffee and mumbled good morning. Apparently we had all slept in, I thought.

I poured Bella and myself some coffee and went to sit with the group. My head hurt so bad it was making my ears hum and it seemed to be getting progressively louder.

I dug my finger in my ear hoping to quell the annoying buzzing but it persisted. I looked up from my coffee and noticed everyone looking up and around.

"Do you hear that?" Carlisle asked alarmed.

"I thought it was in my head..." I said.

"Me too." agreed Emmett.

We had become so used to the absence of normal sounds like planes and other cars that the strange noise and what it could mean had us wary.

Jasper stood quickly and jogged over to the well house where we stored our guns. He returned and tossed one to Emmett, Carlisle and I. I checked the lock and ammunition before tucking it into my waistband.

The noise continued to grow louder and echoed through the woods around us making it seem that whatever it was surrounded us.

"ATV?" asked Emmett.

"Too loud." argued Jasper.

"It sounds like an old dirt bike. Like the one James used to have." Alice mentioned turning to Jasper. "Remember? We could hear it coming a mile away."

"Maybe." he muttered non-committal.

I ran towards the cabin to rouse Bella but she stormed out of the cabin and ran to me, panic in her eyes.

I held her protectively. "It's OK, baby." I soothed and hoped she couldn't feel me shaking, too.

We had spent months patrolling to protect, never once did we discuss what would happen it someone from the outside approached us.

We were so suddenly plunged into silence it was almost deafening. No one moved. Emmett had turned to look across the lake while Jasper, Carlisle and I watched the woods around us searching.

Then we heard it.

"Hello?"

_____________________________________________________________

**A/N:** Thank you all so much! Your support and encouragement mean so much to me. I heart you all, hard. ;)

Now, go love this please:

**Suicide King** by **Nightshade713 **

**Summary: **First things first, stay calm. We're all going to die someday, and although the precept sounds strange-- make sure you die at the right age. AU, AH. A severely twisted sci-fi, quantum mechanic-induced plot awaits. Read at your own risk.


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight.**

**My Beta, Bublichka, owns me.**

**Chapter 14**

**AngelaPOV**

The bike began sputtering as it processed the last of it's fuel. We hadn't made it far enough to feel completely safe and we were both exhausted from walking most of last night.

I tapped Ben on the shoulder, the engine noise too loud to yell over, and pointed out the sign as we crawled by. _Just one more mile_ I mentally begged our bike, which continued to wheeze, as Ben turned onto the narrow dirt road leading to Woodmont and pushed it to the max.

We reached the main gate as the bike died. Ben threw it down in disgust before giving it a sharp kick, cursing loudly.

I stood in front of the gate and dropped our bag before flopping down next to it. I took out the small water bottle that we saved from those fiends by hiding it down the front of Ben's pants. That stupid fucker had his hands all over me and didn't think to check Ben. He had already found our gun and at that point I was willing to do anything to keep us alive.

I took a small sip, not knowing when we'd come across clean water again, and then passed it to Ben. He shook his head as he walked to the doors and I stashed the bottle under our clothes once again.

Ben pulled and pushed on the large wooden door, testing to see if it was locked, although even if it was the surrounding fence looked like it could be climbed.

We waited in silence, straining our ears for any noise that would alert us to the presence of others. It was a routine we learned well through out our traveling. Usually the main doors to the colonies were guarded, so I was beginning to think the grounds were empty until I heard the sound of several voices. I looked at Ben and saw my emotions reflected back at me. Excitement, fear, and apprehension.

Ben cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted "Hello?"

The voices stopped abruptly and were replaced with the sound of several pairs of footsteps approaching rapidly.

I got up to stand behind Ben and as the door slowly opened and tried to keep my nerves in check when the barrel of a gun preceded our hosts.

I thought of our last encounter with survivors. We had been walking along I-75 continuing on our way to my home in Tennessee. We'd spent the past few months making our way with the help of others. We'd come across so many good and helpful people that we naively accepted a ride from a couple who said they were on their way North and we were welcome to stay and rest with them as long as we needed.

"I'm Alec and this is Jane." He said smiling as we climbed in and thanked them.

The quiet conversation between Ben and the gun toting man broke me from my memory and I looked around them trying to get a glimpse of the inside.

A larger man, more menacing than the first blocked my view and I shrunk back behind Ben once again but not before noticing the big guy trying to hide a smile.

"I'm Jasper and this is Emmett," the man in front said after Ben had told them our names.

Jasper opened the gate wider, leaving just enough room for Ben to enter, pushing the old motorcycle beside him while I trailed behind. We stopped just inside the door and Jasper hurried to lock it behind us while Emmett stood menacingly in front.

As Emmett began leading us forward I noticed a large group watching us. I couldn't even imagine how we looked after traveling for months and sleeping where we could.

Emmett handled introductions as we came to a stop several feet away from the group.

"This is Ben and Angela." he said nodding to each of us and I waited for him to name everyone else but he didn't.

Jasper had brought up the rear and was now reaching for my bag.

"Hey!" Ben shouted, startled, as my eyes widened in shock and I flinched away from Jasper's outstretched hand.

"I'm just checking for our safety." Jasper said in a gentle voice but did not move his hand.

"You're pointing guns at us and you're worried about your safety?" Ben asked incredulous. "We don't have anything. We traded our gun for food awhile ago."

He looked down ashamed that he'd led us into that situation and I placed a hand on his arm in comfort trying to reassure him.

"I'm more worried about whether they've encountered anyone who's been sick." A tall, angry looking man called out to no one in particular.

"Edward, it's a little late now." Another man countered calling attention to the group's proximity to us. "Regardless, we've been exposed."

"If they plan on staying, I think it would be a good idea to keep limited contact, maybe even quarantine..." Edward suggested ignoring the older man's reasoning.

"It's obvious we're all immune." a woman interrupted, her displeasure with Edward apparent, and I decided I liked her already.

"Really, Bella?" Edward whispered incredulously as he turned toward the woman. "That was a bunch of conspiracy theory bullshit..."

"Edward." she said, her voice flat, holding his gaze like she was daring him to continue.

"Bella." He challenged, taking her bait.

"Now's not the time." The older man interjected, breaking them from their developing argument and bringing their attention back to the group.

I looked away, turning my attention to Jasper who was now rummaging through our personal belongings. He checked the main compartment and several small pockets before he was satisfied. He held our bag out to us, his eyes asking forgiveness.

"You can never be too sure." Jasper said as Ben reached out and grabbed the bag, then clutched it to his chest.

"That's right." Edward said turning to face the group and continuing to keep his distance from us. "I insist we keep them isolated for a few days. We don't know who they've encountered."

"Jasper and Alice didn't lock us all away when we showed up." Bella argued

"That was different." He huffed.

"How was that different?" She asked, close to yelling.

"Because I didn't care then." He whispered.

"We haven't seen anyone for two days." Ben spoke up in our defense, "and we haven't seen anyone sick for almost a week."

"That settles it." A small woman spoke up with a decisive nod. "If they were sick, they would have already begun to show symptoms. Am I right?" Without waiting for an answer, she took Ben and me by the hand and began herding the group towards the tables set near the fire.

We ate heartily while we shared our tale of survival starting at how we met while attending the University Of Georgia in Athens. Ben lived nearby in Loganville and commuted. He had lost his family in the early days of the outbreak, but I still held out hope since I had been in contact with my parents before the riots and they had been well. Ben offered to take me home before the fallout from the global announcement, and while we prepared, time had run out.

We sat together in my dorm watching the staticy news footage. Ben kept his promise and despite our lack of resources, we began the trip in his car traveling north towards Tennessee. Blockades and closed towns forced us to take back roads and we became hopelessly lost, driving in circles until we ran out of gas. We traveled on foot after that, reaching a small town where we took shelter in someone's home for a few days, ultimately taking the car and gun left behind and continuing once again until the fuel was gone. As we traveled we came across others in similar situations, healthy and sick alike. Colonies were created and Ben and I traveled between them learning how to trade, which kept us fed and clothed.

Recently we had encountered others who were not hospitable, leaving us no choice but to move on before getting the resources we needed. As I explained how the last couple had driven us to their encampment promising shelter, I struggled to keep my emotions in check. I explained to them, that instead of helping us, they had taken our gun and in exchange we were left alive and given a pack of crackers.

Sleep deprivation and hunger had us wandering lost and unprotected as we tried to put as much distance between us and that group. Nearing collapse, Ben had carried me until we reached the outskirts of another small abandoned town and took shelter in one of the many empty homes.

As we searched the home for supplies the next morning we discovered the motorcycle we'd rode in on, bringing us to this point.

Despite our travels and meeting people we never stayed too long and certainly never opened ourselves up to anyone. I'm not sure why, but we felt safe here and as we told our story the feelings that I had numbed came bubbling towards the surface.

As Ben finished our tale I began to cry softly into his shoulder. Months of being strong for each other had taken their toll and when I felt someone's arms wrap around me, the tenuous hold I had on myself slipped and I melted into their embrace.

I cried for what seemed like hours until no more tears came. My eyes were so puffy I could barely see and my nose had dripped onto my holder's shirt. I sniffled and tried to wipe at my nose while I pulled away. I was handed a small rag and looked up into the face of the woman whose shirt I had ruined.

"Hi Angela." she said, smiling warmly down at me. "I'm Esme."

"I'm sorry about your shirt." I whispered.

"No worries," she chuckled and brushed a strand of hair off my forehead. "Rosalie and Alice," she nodded towards the blond and a shorter woman standing over by a cabin talking, "have made you both a bed. And if you'd like a bath, Bella has drawn some water from the well."

I looked around to see everyone involved in various activities while Ben emerged from another building, his dark hair slicked back, wet from a bath.

I nodded my head "A bath would be nice, thank you."

"I'll show you where to go." Esme said as she stood with me.

Bella had brought buckets of water into an old shower house and placed what I assumed was a towel and soap on a bench along with clean clothes.

I emerged awhile later into the descending twilight. Alice stood and took my clothes as she offered her seat to me. I watched as Ben spoke to Edward. His face was intense but not angry as he and Edward conversed.

Bella came to sit beside me and offered me some water. I sipped it although I really wanted to chug it. We hadn't discussed a trade for the food or beds and I was afraid our debt would get too high.

"Are you feeling better?" she asked quietly, her eyes across the fire on Ben and Edward.

"I had forgotten how it felt to be clean." I said wryly.

"How long were you planning to stay?" she asked.

"If we're any trouble..." I started

"No, I didn't mean anything. You're welcome to stay as long as you want." she said.

"Of course, we'll trade. We don't have anything but the motorcycle..." I offered but stopped when confusion clouded her face.

"Trade?" She asked.

"For the food, clothes, and beds." I stated.

"You don't owe us anything. We're just glad to see friendly faces." she laughed and once again looked at Edward and Ben. "But if you insist, I'm sure we could put you to work."

I chuckled as well, her teasing only making me like her more. She continued to glance across the fire and my curiosity was beginning to nag me. Soon Edward stood and my unasked questions were answered as Bella's face lit up and her body relaxed.

He came over and sat beside her lazily bringing his arm to rest around her. She leaned against his shoulder and he kissed the top of her head. Everyone else around us began to shuffle off offering calls of Goodnight and I took this as our cue to head in to bed. Ben had come to stand beside me and offered his hand to help me up.

We said our goodnights as well and headed into what everyone called the single's cabin, but from the looks of it needed to be renamed, as Emmett held Rosalie in a tight embrace kissing her neck while she giggled and halfheartedly pushed him away.

Ben and I spoke quietly on my bunk after Rosalie and Emmett had gone to bed. We tried to remember the last time we had felt so at home but were at a loss.

"I'd never ask you to stay, Ang," Ben whispered "we'll leave whenever you're ready."

His words lay heavy on my mind as thoughts of my parents took precedence. I missed them so much but for the first time in so long I felt secure. We wouldn't have to worry where our next meal came from or how we'd get it. The promise of stability after months of turmoil gave me plenty to think about as my eyes grew heavy and I slipped into a deep dreamless sleep.

**A/N: **Dearest Readers, You astound me with your kind words and encouragement. I hope the wait from the cliffie was worth it ;)

As you all may know, I strive to respond to every review. This past week, however, Real Life had other plans. Please forgive me.


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight**

**My beta, Bublichka, owns me.**

**Chapter 15**

**EPOV**

I wasn't exactly sure how I felt about the newcomers. They walked in looking dejected and tired. Part of me empathized with their situation as they appealed to my humanitarian instincts, but my family stood around me and I would protect them above all others.

In a short time they had become the brothers and sisters I'd never had and I had found love where I never thought I would. My anger over the group's immediate acceptance of the stragglers came from my need to ensure that their safety was never threatened.

These two kids embodied my worst fears. They raveled the state, witnessed the fall of society, and learned a new way of life. All while trying to be safe with no survival skills at all. The fact that they survived that way and not succumb to the virus was a miracle. We'd continued our existence in the bubble we'd built and I wanted to keep them away, to live in the bliss that ignorance offered.

Bella and Carlisle tried to reason with me, but it was Alice's observation regarding the flu's incubation and blunt handling of the situation that brought me here, speaking to Ben and discussing what he'd seen in more detail. I tried to understand the life lived outside these walls.

"Were the other colonies like ours?" I asked as we sat together after dinner.

"Not exactly," he said before taking a drink, "the other colonies are larger, but less organized."

"How do you mean?"

"Well, they patrol together in shifts. But food, water and such is an every man for himself mentality. You're the first ones we've found who are so self-reliant," he finished and I thought about how lucky they were to find us and finally be a step ahead of starvation and danger.

"Did you ever have direct contact with anyone sick?" I asked.

"No. They were usually quarantined within the colony," He smirked, looking deeply interested in his cup.

"Look," I began, "it's nothing personal..."

"It's cool." Ben said quickly, cutting off my awkward apology and looking across the fire. I followed his gaze and saw Bella smile as she caught my sight in her periphery.

"I'd go through hell and back for her." Ben whispered, his eyes intent on Angela.

"Yes." I said quietly, swearing the same for Bella.

Our eyes met in understanding and I shook his hand before getting up to sit with Bella since it was getting close to our shift.

I immediately wrapped my arm around Bella, craving the feel of her against me. We had spent most of the day apart since the excitement of our visitors and subsequent disagreement.

I felt her melt into my body as we said goodnight to everyone and they retreated to their beds. I would never tire of the heat that spread from Bella through me as I cradled her in my arms. I felt powerful as she surrendered herself to me and trusted me. I looked around, making sure we were alone before I brushed her hair to the side, exposing her neck. I slid my nose along her jaw and hummed as she shivered against me and her fingers tightened around mine.

"Edward." she sighed as my free hand tangled in her hair and my lips met her neck, tasting her.

I trembled against my restraint as I held her tighter, while gently pushing her away. Her eyes were wide and questioning as they met mine. I lowered my forehead to hers, breathing with her, still keeping her close.

She raised her hands and threaded her fingers through my hair gently tugging my face to hers. Her lips were a breath away from mine and I licked my lips, anticipating feeling hers against my own.

"You're wrong." She stated and my eyes snapped open.

"What?" I asked dumbly, trying to think through the cloud of lust that idled my brain.

"How do you explain our immunity when we were so thoroughly immersed in the virus?" She asked as though we were already in the middle of a conversation.

I'm pretty sure I whined when I realized we were not going to be kissing anytime soon and I rubbed my hands over my face.

"I can't."

"Just think about it. I read an article on how recent studies showed descendants of the Spanish Influenza survivors are immune to HIV," she said, her voice raised in excitement.

"This isn't HIV, Bella." I said and she huffed.

"I know, Edward. If people can be immune to something as complex as HIV why couldn't it happen with H9N2?"

"So, you're saying genetics kept us alive?"

"Yes," she said simply, "families either survived or died after exposure. Whole families."

"My dad died from it Bella. It's not genetic immunity," I said quietly and Bella gasped in surprise at my admission.

"I'm sorry," she said as she laced her fingers through mine in a gesture of comfort.

I squeezed gently before untangling our fingers to bring her into my arms once again.

"Was he in Atlanta?" she asked hesitantly.

"No, he was researching at ground zero," I replied, my voice flat. This line of questioning was bringing about feelings I'd put aside months ago. It was uncomfortable to open myself up to them again.

"Maybe it mutated," she suggested and I pulled away suddenly, exasperated at the discussion.

"Bella." I warned trying to keep the anger out of my voice and failing. She stilled beside me.

We sat in awkward silence, her breath coming in shallow huffs. I reached for her and she jerked away, and then stood, awkwardly turning towards the cabin.

"Don't leave, please." I begged as I stood and grabbed her hand, pulling her back to me.

"I'm sorry." I whispered.

She lowered her head and sniffed.

"Don't cry, baby," I said softly, "I'm not angry at you. I just... I struggled with it for so long and I thought I had made peace with it... its too late for all that. I can't think about it. _This_," I said, gesturing around the grounds, "and _you_ are my life now."

I brought my hands to her cheeks as I leaned forward to capture her lips with mine. She whimpered and I smiled, knowing she was fighting with herself to stay mad. I felt her resistance fade and her whimper turned into a moan as I deepened the kiss and she pressed herself against me.

We spent the rest of our time wrapped around each other beside the fire pit, only moving to head into our cabin to bed once our shift was over.

Once we were inside, we stood between our beds, neither of us ready to part willingly. I reached for her hand and gently pulled her behind me towards my bed.

"Wait," she whispered as I began undressing, "I need my pajamas."

I dropped my shirt on the bed and I shook my head as I fingered the hem of her shirt. My fingers brushed her skin as I slowly raised it, my eyes focused on hers. Her breathing quickened as I raised her shirt higher, letting my fingers glide over her ribs and alongside her breasts. She slowly raised her arms, allowing me to remove her top. Once I had it over her head I dropped it to the floor and reached for my shirt and put it on her, keeping my eyes locked with hers the whole time. I wanted to look, feel and taste her body but not in a crowded cabin. I wanted privacy when I allowed myself the absolute pleasure of finally touching her naked body. I wanted time to explore, kiss and lick every inch of her skin.

"You're such a tease." She laughed breathlessly, and I smirked back at her as I climbed into bed and patted the empty space beside me.

"I'll have you to myself... soon." I promised.

She lay down on her side, facing me and smiled softly as I wrapped myself around her unable to ever feel close enough.

~*~*~*~*~

The next morning we gathered together as we always did before chores and we took turns acclimating Ben and Angela into our fold.

They toured the clinic with Carlisle, Jasper showed them our water filtration system, and Emmett volunteered to teach toilets 101.

The rest of the day was spent with them shadowing us as we went about our day.

As we sat down together after chores, I addressed the group about the cabins.

"The single's cabin is getting a little crowded," I started and was greeted with snickers and good natured cat calls, there were no secrets here.

Bella flushed beside me as I looked over at her and winked.

"What do you suggest Edward?" Esme asked trying valiantly to hide her wide smile.

"Well, we have two cabins sitting unused. Bella and I would like our own cabin," I said in a rush.

"What about the rest of us?" Emmett asked incredulous "You and Bella get your own cabins and the rest of us still have to share?"

I looked over at him horrified and he grinned widely, knowing exactly what I had meant, but dragging out my obvious embarrassment.

"Emmett, stop." Alice chided, smiling widely between me and Bella as if we had just announced our engagement.

"Well, it looks like we have some work to do to fill out our afternoon." Jasper said as he stood and clapped me on the back as if to say 'way to go.'

The rest of the afternoon passed in a dusty, sweaty blur as we all worked to air out the cabins, transfer bedding, and dismantle the bunk beds to create one large bed.

During one run between cabins I noticed Ben bent over and pale as he struggled to catch his breath.

"You alright?" I asked, a little winded myself.

"Y-yeah," he stammered "just ou-out of shape."

"Sit down and I'll get you some water," I offered, "we're almost done."

He smiled in thanks and sat heavily, the color slowly returning to his cheeks.

His hands were cold and clammy which immediately raised my concern that he may be suffering from the heat worse than I thought. I called Carlisle over and he examined Ben before ordering him into the shade for the rest of the day.

When we had finished moving, Bella stood beside me and bumped me with her shoulder as we stood in the middle of our cabin looking around. I was grinning like a fool as I wrapped my arm around her, pulling her close.

"Gross! You're all sweaty," she squealed, scrunching up her nose.

"So are you," I said, pretending to be offended as she pushed me away.

She continued to laugh as she threw me a towel and pushed me towards the door.

"You're so bossy!" I yelled out as I made my way towards the well house.

Emmett emerged from the shed carrying a bucket in each hand and a towel in his mouth.

"You too, huh?" I asked and he rolled his eyes and slowly walked towards the showers.

~*~*~*~

I rejoined the group as they convened for dinner. I glanced over at Ben, still concerned after his brush with heat stroke earlier. He seemed alright but looked like he could lie down and sleep for several days. Angela sat beside him also looking a little tired and it only solidified how taxing the past several months had been for them.

I walked over to wait my turn beside Carlisle as he made his plate. Instead Bella handed me a full plate and cup before taking my place in line.

I looked back and forth between the plate and Bella in shock. Even Carlisle was surprised as he stood in front of me with his mouth hanging open. Bella had always been kind and thoughtful but she made it clear that she would never wait on someone who was perfectly capable to serve themselves.

The gesture spoke volumes.

__________________________________________

**A/N: **_You_ *points* are awesome. Thank you!

OK, quick run down for ya'll... My beta and others are dragging me, kicking and screaming, away from the computer. I'm taking some time to get the rest of this bad boy planned out, down to the last period. I begged and pleaded to at least post this chapter and was granted permission . So, I will see ya'll no later than the 16th.

While I'm working hard, please check out www(.)thefandomgivesback(.)com. There will be an auction with bidding beginning on 11/15. I've put a 'The Colony' Pre-outbreak outtake on the block to raise money to help fight childhood cancer.

And then go read **Facebook Friends** by **GreenPuma. **It's fluffy goodness.


	16. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight**

**My Beta, Bublichka, owns me.**

**Chapter 16 **

**BPOV **

Edward sighed as he pulled me to him while we stood once again in the middle of our cabin. I thrilled at the thought of 'our cabin'. His touch and the sound of my name rolling off his tongue were igniting a fire within me that threatened to burn out of control.

These feelings I had for him were so foreign to me. I had spent years after my father's death in a near constant state of anger. I felt contempt for anyone who gave themselves to someone else. How could they give in so easily? Everyone left you eventually. The only one you could truly count on was yourself and yet I stood here, sharing a cabin with a man I had come to love in such a short amount of time, willing to give myself to him without fully knowing how he felt.

I looked up into his eyes and knew that no matter what, giving my heart to him was worth it. I had never been so happy to be proven wrong.

Edward moved to turn down the lamp while I remained standing at the foot of our bed. My hands turned to ice as the adrenaline began to race through my body. He returned, walking slowly towards me, his eyes sparkling. I giggled and fidgeted nervously, suddenly self-conscious under his intense gaze as he continued to move towards me like a predator. The air was charged from weeks of sexual tension, finally culminating in this one moment. I began to shiver in anticipation, goose bumps springing up all over my body, as he removed his shirt and carelessly dropped it to the floor.

Edward grabbed my hips, pulling me towards him while placing a gentle kiss on my lips, but moving away before I could deepen it.

I gasped in shock as he scooped me up and laid me on the bed, placing searing kisses along the exposed skin of my neck, causing me to moan and grip his back.

Edward moved lower and lifted my shirt, then began to lick and kiss the newly uncovered skin. I writhed beneath him and arched my back in response to his slow and deliberate torture.

My body immediately responded to his touch by creating an ache of need that radiated from my belly to the apex of my thighs. My quickened breaths encouraged him and he impatiently removed my shirt and immediately ran his tongue around my hardened nipple, causing me to gasp at the sensation of his mouth on my breast and the excitement it caused.

I ran my hands up from his back and threaded my fingers in his hair holding him to me. I impatiently nudged him toward my neglected side and he mirrored his previous attention before playfully biting down.

I groaned loudly and wrapped my legs around his waist in response.

He chuckled at my reaction and I pulled his hair playfully in retaliation. He must have liked it because he rocked his hips against mine, creating a delicious friction, eliciting loud moans from both of us. I had to feel him with no barriers between us so I quickly reached for the button on his jeans. He lifted his hips to let me push his open jeans down over his backside. He rolled over to finish the job and I stared in wonderment at his body.

Edward quirked an eyebrow and I smiled, unashamed, as I brought my hand up to trace the lines his muscles created. He closed his eyes and hummed in pleasure as my hand wrapped around his hard length. In an instant he was over me and yanking my shorts off.

"I won't last long at all if you continue touching me like that," He murmured, his voice strained, as he threw the shorts over his shoulder.

He kissed his way up my body before settling between my legs and staring into my eyes as he guided himself forward, entering me slowly. My breath hitched as I was overcome by the emotion in his eyes and I brought my hips up, taking him deeper.

"You feel so good baby," He moaned, sending chills racing through me.

I sighed in contentment at his words and the feelings they evoked. All my life I felt as if I needed something but never knew what it was. Now, as I lay beneath him wrapped in his arms, I realized he was what I had been missing. I felt whole.

He grunted as he attacked my mouth and we began to move slowly, relishing in the feeling of our bodies joined. Our breaths quickened as the pace of our lovemaking increased. He grabbed my thigh, bringing my leg up and holding it against his hip as he thrust harder hitting that sweet spot that would be my undoing. My body tensed as the constant pressure slowly built upon itself, bringing me closer to my release. I came hard, crying out his name.

"Fuck," He growled as he continued to thrust several more times before a look of panic crossed his face. He dropped my leg and pulled out as he climaxed, his cum pooling on my fevered skin.

I lay motionless, unsure of how to react. My first instinct was to laugh but I held it in knowing that it could be a huge blow to his ego.

He looked up horrified. "I...I'm sorry," He stammered grabbing the sheet and attempting to clean me off. "I didn't know what else to do."

"It's OK," I insisted bringing my hand to his, stilling his movements. "At least you were thinking."

A look of relief came over his face as I sat up and wrapped my arms around him, pulling him down beside me. I snuggled into him, unwilling to let this awkward moment overshadow the intense experience we had shared.

~*~*~*~*~

We were roused from our slumber by the sunlight streaming in through our window. The lamp had run out of fuel hours ago, extinguishing itself as we drifted to sleep naked and blissful.

"Morning baby," Edward whispered into my hair before kissing my head affectionately.

I grinned despite myself as I stretched, cat like, revealing my bare chest to him. His eyes widened and he smirked as he pulled me closer and hovered over me.

"We need to get up before they come searching for us..." I said, making no effort to move.

"Mmm," he hummed as he drew a finger around my breast.

A light knock on our door sent me scrambling to cover my exposed chest.

"Speak of the devil..." I laughed and Edward groaned as he rolled off the bed and pulled on his jeans.

I dressed after he left the cabin and walked outside to find Edward and Carlisle in a tense discussion. I looked around confused. It was too late for everyone to still be sleeping. I expected to find the group involved in various activities, but the site was bare. The morning fire hadn't even been lit and I was immediately alarmed.

"What's going on, Carlisle?" I asked as I approached them.

Carlisle turned towards me as I approached and I noticed he held face masks in his hands.

"Ben and Angela?" I asked, already knowing the answer before he nodded his head gravely.

I began to shake as Carlisle handed me a mask.

"It can't be," I insisted. "The timing is all wrong. They would've been symptomatic _days_ before now. We can't know without a test, Carlisle. There could be a number of things wrong...dehydration, exhaustion..."

"Bella," he said, stopping my argument. "They have almost all the symptoms."

"It's too late. Oh, God it's too late," Edward moaned with his hands fisted into his hair. Carlisle continued to hold the mask towards Edward, urging him to take it.

I had already placed mine over my nose and mouth and took in the scene before me with wide eyes. How had this happened? If they had been exposed almost a week ago, they should have been dead already. It didn't make sense unless the virus had mutated...

"Oh my God," I blurted out when the realization hit me that if the theory was right we may no longer be unaffected.

Edward donned his mask and gripped my hand tightly as we made our way to Ben and Angela's cabin. The closer we got the stronger the fear became. I thought back to the initial outbreak and how I'd administered care with very little protection. In those early days, I was scared, but the patients care and comfort took precedence. I was not scared of exposure or the outcome. I did my job.

Now as we walked through the cabin's door I fought to continue moving towards the forms in their beds.

Angela lay curled into the fetal position shivering with fever and Ben lay glassy eyed, his gaze fixed on Angela.

My stomach dropped.

I wanted to turn and run. Self preservation was the forerunner in my thoughts. Edward stopped walking and I looked up at him wondering if I would see the same fear that gripped me.

But his eyes had gone dark and his expression was hard.

I'd seen that face before.

Edward was being presented with his biggest fear and what he perceived to be his biggest failure all at once and he was internalizing it like he had before.

"They can't stay here," Edward said his voice frantic.

"What do you suppose we do Edward, push them out the front door?" Carlisle asked, incredulous.

"No," Edward muttered, distracted by his thoughts. "I'll take them away... back to Atlanta."

"What? You can't!" I argued, as he headed for the door.

I called after him, racing to catch up as he crossed the yard towards our cabin. He tore open the door and began going through the cabin collecting his clothes.

I grabbed his arm as he brushed past me in an attempt to stop him.

"Edward," I whispered, "Please talk to me."

"I have to get ready," he said, sadness clouding his face as he gently removed his arm from my grasp and walked out the door leaving me once again chasing after him.

Emmett and Jasper beat me to the yard, they knew when Carlisle sent them to their cabins that Ben and Angela were sick, but curiosity brought them out as Carlisle and Edward were now shouting at each other.

"I let you drag me here," Edward yelled his face reddening in anger.

"You would have died Edward," Carlisle responded, his usually calm demeanor gone.

"We're all going to die now," Edward seethed. "I knew this was going to happen. The _one_ time it actually mattered, no one listened to _me_."

"Don't get dramatic," Emmett spoke up attracting Edward's furious stare.

"You're all wasting my time," Edward spat. "Help me or leave me alone."

"Where are you going?" asked Jasper softly.

"The lab," Edward said. "I'll get it right this time or die trying."

No one agreed with his decision but by the looks on their faces, they felt powerless to stop him.

"I'll get supplies from the clinic," Carlisle conceded quietly while Jasper offered food and his Land Rover and Emmett left to procure a gun.

I returned the mask to my face and went to Ben and Angela to prepare them for the trip while Edward went to get the fuel we had stored.

~*~*~*~*~

The back seat in Jasper's Land Rover was fully reclined, and while Ben was able to walk to the car, Carlisle carried Angela. We laid them down among the blankets we had gathered and Angela began to cry softly.

"I want my mama," she whimpered as her body shook.

I placed a caring hand against her burning temple and tried to contain the bitter tears that threatened to fall. They had both traveled so far and endured so much, it wasn't fair for them to end up this way.

The short walk to the car had drained Ben and in an effort to reassure Angela all he could do was place a weak hand on her back offering comfort as his own tears escaped.

I gently shut their door and stepped away from the car as I lowered my mask. Edward busied himself with last minute supply checks and I stood stoically waiting to be acknowledged.

"You've got the CB," Jasper reminded Edward. "Use it."

Edward nodded and finally stepped over to me and I was no longer able to hold my thoughts.

"Please don't shut me out Edward. I know you feel you need to leave, it's OK, just let me go with you," I begged as I tugged on his arm like a petulant child but he avoided my eyes, instead focusing on the woods behind me.

"I need you to stay here," He whispered finally meeting my eyes. "I can't do this if I have to worry about you, too."

"What am I supposed to do?" I asked.

"Be safe," he whispered, placing a kiss on my forehead before climbing into the car and driving away.

I stood staring at the gate long after Jasper had closed and locked it behind Edward.

Years ago, I swore it would never happen again, and yet there I stood watching one more person leave me behind.

~*~*~*~*~

**A/N:** Thank you all for waiting while I got my head together. I will try very hard to continue updating on Mondays.

I have come to the realization that I am nothing without some very special people who support me and not only tell me I when I'm fail, but help me fix it. You have made this crazy train worth riding ;)


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight.**

**My beta, Bublichka, owns me.**

**Chapter 17 **

**EPOV **

I raced down the highway as fast as I could without jarring my passengers. I drove blindly, never taking notice of the sights around me as my mind raced with different scenarios and possibilities on how my time needed to be spent once I reached the lab. I pictured the building in my head and mentally walked the halls and inventoried the basement vault. I would need to park in the attached garage and then walk up two flights of stairs before reaching the access door I needed. This was the point in my plan where being alone with two weakened invalids was a mistake.

I could only hope the CDC remained untouched, aside from the obvious destruction from several months ago. I couldn't imagine not having access to the supplies I needed. I would have a hard enough time watching Ben and Angela die, how could I then return home to watch my family die as well.

A sad smile tugged at my lips as I let myself think of Bella and the night we'd shared. It was wrong of me to leave her the way I did but in my panicked state I had only thought of the immediate danger and solution. I brought my hand up and toyed with the CB. I missed them already. I missed her.

I'd left the comfort and security of our colony in an effort to protect my family knowing that I may never return to them. I shook my head trying to dispel those thoughts that threatened to take hold.

I had a job to do and my time was limited.

As the Atlanta skyline came into view I almost slammed on my breaks and turned around. I felt sick at the sight that lay before me. The once proud bustling city lay in ruins. Windows that had reflected blindingly before were now broken. It was like someone had taken a million rocks and tried to break every window in every building.

I drove slowly through the city looking for...I don't know what. I didn't want to find anyone and I didn't want them finding me. For all I could see on my route, the city had been abandoned.

I pulled into the CDC parking garage like I had planned and made my way through the labyrinth layers. It was dark and cool down here and I'm sure my wards appreciated it over the stifling summer wind that blasted through the open windows on our drive in.

I looked into the back seat and watched their chests rise and fall as they exerted all their energy just to breath. Every now and then one of them would whimper or moan as they shifted uncomfortably.

"Ben?" I shook him gently and his eyes fluttered, "I'm going to...I'll be right back."

I shut the door gently but the resulting echo had me whirling around and gripping my gun. I rubbed my hands over my face when I realized my overreaction and began walking towards the stairs.

I entered the dark confines of the stairwell and the door clicked ominously behind me and I began taking the steps two at a time.

I burst through the door to the basement like a child running from the boogie man. I knew that the small windows near the high ceiling would provide just enough light to lead me to the generator.

Thanks to the laminated user guide hanging near the main switch I was able to get the generator running and power just the area I needed. My goal was to remain inconspicuous while I worked and cared for Angela and Ben. I would only run generator during the day fearing that lights shining in the windows at night would attract unwanted attention.

I propped the stairwell door open in preparation for the several trips I would take to bring in supplies and then Ben and Angela themselves. Sweat was beading along my forehead as I made the last trip up the stairs and gently laid Angela next to Ben on the palette I had created with the quilts and sheets we brought. I looked down on their sleeping forms, and took in their physical appearance. Dehydration had now taken hold, causing the circles under their eyes to darken and their lips to chap. Their chests heaved as they struggled to pull enough air into their lungs which were now probably filling with fluid, collapsing as the tiny alveoli were destroyed by the virus. It was only a matter of time now before the final symptom emerged, the cough, bringing them closer to death.

I shook myself from my revere and made my way to the vault. I stood before the large door knowing behind it lay the previous attempts at a cure as well as the extra supplies needed to carry out further experimentation. But at this moment I needed what was contained behind the smaller door beside it.

The CDC storeroom had been my original plan of survival after the rioting and before I'd been taken to the safety of the colony. The room contained emergency supplies of bottled water and freeze dried food as well as medical supplies such as IV supplies and tubes with different colored stoppers for collecting blood and other bodily fluids.

I grabbed two IV bags and several sterile packs of tubing and needles. I only hoped I could remember the skills learned early in med school and that Ben and Angela would be incoherent enough to not mind my digging around for veins. I nervously kneeled between them, wishing I had brought Bella. I realized I needed her after all. Not just for her nursing skills but for the calming affect she had on me. I knew now that I couldn't do this alone, but it was too late. I thought for one moment of the CB sitting in the dash of Jasper's car. How easy would it be to pick it up, just to hear her voice? But thinking like that would get me nowhere. I had work to do and planning my pity party was only wasting precious time.

An hour later Ben and Angela were successfully hooked up to IV fluids laced with narcotics to take the edge off and I was deep in the vault gathering what I could for the remaining hours of daytime. I found the supplies to test for H9N2 and while I waited for Ben and Angela's results to process I took out the hard copy of my father's report which contained the early facts about the virus, minus the bullshit theories I found in the bootleg copy. I also had the last report I had written before giving the press conference. I sat at a low table with them opened side by side comparing trends, statistics and viral DNA. I looked for a clue or anything to trigger a thought. I startled as the timer dinged alerting me to the waiting results. I looked in disbelief as the readout in front of me negated the symptoms Ben and Angela were experiencing. It could only mean the virus had in fact mutated. Nothing in either of these reports mattered.

I was back at square one.

In a fit of frustration I picked up both reports and threw them against the nearest wall. They hit with a satisfying smack causing the papers to explode from their binding and flutter to the floor.

I raked my hands through my hair, feeling suddenly claustrophobic. My breaths became shallow and my heart beat loudly in my ears. I began walking up the stairs leading out of the basement and towards the courtyard located outside.

Once there, I collapsed onto a bench and began taking in large gulps of fresh air to calm myself. The sun was setting and I continued to lie on the bench watching the light fade around me.

I sat up quickly and looked around as the sound of tentative footsteps approached. In my haste to break free from the basement I had left myself vulnerable, forgetting my gun that was safely tucked away in my bag and sitting exposed.

I held my breath and looked into the darkened corners of the courtyard straining to make out a form as the footsteps continued their way closer.

**BPOV**

I spent the rest of the morning violently wavering between sadness and anger. I paced our cabin like a caged animal muttering obscenities then tearfully falling to the bed that was still rumpled and smelling of sex from the night before.

Alice had come in shortly after Edward had left, while I was in the middle of a loud outburst, to offer a pep talk. Her kind words and understanding only sent me into another crying jag. She held me against her as my fear manifested itself into tears and poured out of me.

Alice sat with me until my sobs turned into hiccups and my eyes were dry. Rosalie came in then and Alice stood giving my head one final pat before she left us. It was like watching a changing of the guards and I wondered what they were thinking about me.

I looked at Rosalie through my puffy eyes. She sat in Alice's empty spot, picking at a piece of string on the quilt beneath us. I continued to stare at her until she raised her head and looked back.

"What?" She asked innocently and I crossed my arms.

"Is it your turn for Bella watch?" I asked smirking and she laughed.

"I brought you water..." She said, still not answering my question and I sighed before thanking her and taking several large gulps.

We sat together in comfortable silence for several minutes before she spoke again.

"I wouldn't hate him for leaving."

"I don't...I just thought we had something," I admitted, embarrassed over my silly insecurities.

"You do," She insisted, "He wouldn't have stayed all this time if you didn't... You reached out to him when everyone else would have let him walk his ass back to Atlanta all those months ago."

"But he still left," I argued, "How would you feel if it was Emmett?"

"We've all lost so much and none of it was in our control." She began her eyes sparkling with unshed tears. "This loss it up to you."

I opened my mouth to argue back, but realized I had no argument. Rosalie pulled a bag from her side that I didn't realize she had, and handed it to me. I looked inside to find a change of clothes along with food and water.

She stood and motioned with her head to follow her out the door. I followed her slowly carrying the bag on my back. Rosalie stopped with her hand on the door and turned to me once again her face serious, "I would have kicked Emmett's ass."

I was laughing as we walked through the door to find everyone standing together around Ben and Angela's motorcycle.

"We knew once we got rid of Edward, you wouldn't be too far behind." Emmett laughed as we joined their circle.

I took in their faces as I tried to memorize them all in this moment.

Esme rushed towards me enveloping me in a hug. "Don't." she whispered fiercely, knowing my thoughts, "You'll be back."

I nodded. The words I should have spoken, I couldn't say. She let me go and I turned toward Jasper who gave me a solemn nod as he began walking the bike towards the doors leading out.

"The tank is full and there's extra right here," he said, pointing to the small red container strapped to the back of the bike.

I nodded again, still not trusting my voice.

"Come back to us." He whispered like a prayer as I took my seat on the bike.

I secured my hair and with one more nod, to convince myself I was ready, I took off towards the road that would lead me to him.

*~*~*~*~*~*

The sun was setting as I pulled up to the CDC. My cheeks burned from the wind and the sun and my hair was all over the place. I cut the engine and walked the bike as I made my way around the building looking for the Land Rover. I was beginning to panic, my thoughts filling with horrible situations in which Edward never made it here, when I heard a door bang open. I tensed immediately trying to locate the sound. I leaned the bike against the nearest wall and made my to the direction I thought I had heard the sound.

I came upon a courtyard filled with benches and an empty water fountain when I heard someone gasping for breath. I looked around frantically, my mind once again imagining Edward hurt or sick. Then I saw him, lying on a bench near an open door. His tear stained face looking at the sky and I began walking slowly towards him hoping not to frighten him. He must have heard me approaching because he suddenly sat up and began looking around the darkened courtyard.

Unable to resist, I began walking faster, wanting to close the distance between us.

He gasped and his face was angry as I emerged from the shadows and stood before him.

"Bella?" He asked as I shifted nervously in front of him, trying to find my voice.

"I'm sorry," I whispered as he stood and began shaking his head, the anger in his eyes fading. I began to apologize once again before he wrapped his arms around me in a crushing hug and kissed me.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," He whispered repeatedly, holding me tightly. "I never should have left you. I need you so much."

I melted into him, suddenly very tired as the events of the past 24 hours came crashing down on me.

I kept my arms wrapped around him, and my eyes locked on his face, as he picked me up and carried me into the building.

I knew then that I would never leave his side. He filled my heart in places I never knew were empty and our need for each other would keep us balanced and grounded as we worked together to save Ben and Angela.

~*~*~*~*~

**A/N: **Together again. *sigh*

I figured I'd be nice and leave you here for now. Thanksgiving is this week and I'm expected to be like involved or something...So, if I can write I will...but I'm pretty sure there will be no new chapter on Monday. I will however post next week and follow that once a week schedule from now on.

Thank you once again for all your support! I love your reviews and questions are never annoying ;) I will always answer if I can.

And OMG! Who **LOVED** New Moon????


	18. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight.**

**My beta, Bublichka, owns me.**

**Chapter 18 **

**EPOV **

I had never been so grateful for Bella's stubbornness as I was now. She stood before me, her cheeks red and her eyes shining. She was an angel to me in that moment.

I went to her, immediately wrapping myself around her and swearing to never leave her again. She melted into me as I picked her up and carried her back into the basement. I set her down across the room from Ben and Angela. I knew she was here to help and we needed to check on Ben and Angela, but I needed one more moment of uninterrupted time with her. While I had been outside with Bella, night had fallen. I had been so wrapped up in my amazement over her arrival that I had already broken my only rule. The lights were on, exposing us to anyone on the outside. I raced to the generator, shutting it down for the night before I made my way back across the room towards Bella.

"How are they?" she asked, as I sat beside her on our makeshift bed.

I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair. "They're stable for now. I gave them some Demerol along with their IV."

Bella looked at me surprised. "You started an IV?"

"I didn't hear them complaining," I muttered and she laughed.

"Well, I'm here now. I'll take care of them while you work."

I took her face in my hands and brought her towards me gently.

"I love you. I'm so glad you're here Bella," I whispered against her lips before kissing her.

She hummed in response as she wrapped her arms around me to pull me closer and deepen the kiss.

We broke apart panting when a feeble cry came from across the room. I grabbed the flashlight Carlisle had included in my supplies and we made our way through dark room and hovered over the sick pair.

Their fevers had spiked once again and Bella moved towards the closet to grab the supplies needed to replace the now empty IV bags. I took the flashlight from Bella and held it steady as she worked. She slowed the drip to conserve our supplies but still provide enough fluids to treat their dehydration. Angela continued to moan and mumble incoherently throughout the process. Bella caressed her hair and shushed her quietly before moving to Ben.

I watched her work, entranced by the caring way she tended to these virtual strangers as though they were her family. I let my mind wander and I envisioned her smoothing the hair of a green-eyed little girl as she patted Bella's swollen belly.

My eyes watered at the surge of hope and determination that coursed through me in that moment. I had to do this. I had to get it right this time.

A cough brought me from my fantasy and I locked eyes with Bella across the prone figures, the horror we felt was evident. Our time was almost out.

Bella stood abruptly and made her way over to the bed I had made for myself. She quickly gathered the bedding and brought it closer to the sick pair despite my protests.

Knowing I couldn't sway her, I saved my energy for the long night ahead.

*~*~*~*~*

Bella sat against the wall monitoring our patients throughout the night as their already compromised lung tissue broke down, causing them to cough uncontrollably. The final stage of the virus was painful and cruel, causing it's victims to essentially drown in their own mucous as their body fought to repair itself.

When Bella did sleep, it was short lived and fitful. Her concern for them and anticipating my needs keeping her from sleeping deeply. As the night wore on, I ran several tests using the blood I'd drawn from Ben and Angela when I started their IVs. Their blood showed an infection not unlike the H9N2, but when I ran genetic testing on it, I realized it did not have the same genetic makeup as the virus I had memorized. We had been right, the virus had mutated, causing all previous research and developments to be void. Not that they had provided answers in the first place.

When I began dozing with my head in my hands, I decided to stop for the night. I rose from the table and made my way over to Bella. I gently moved her to lie down and wrapped my arms around her. I breathed in deeply, allowing her scent to calm my racing thoughts. I scooted closer, pressing her warmth against me and drifted to sleep beside her.

We were awoken several hours later by a loud cry. We stared bleary eyed at each other as we struggled to pinpoint the noise in our sleep deprived state. As soon as we heard it again Bella pushed against me to lift herself up and rushed over to Angela who was now sitting up and crying out as her coughs racked her body and blood splattered the quilt around her. In a small moment of clarity since succumbing to the virus, she looked at us, pleading with her eyes as a small trickle of blood ran from the corner of her mouth. If I hadn't been sitting, I would have fallen to my knees under the weight of my guilt.

I'd worked in my lab and read reports on the devastating affects of the virus but I had never watched someone die from it. I watched in awe as Bella calmed and cleaned Angela before leaning her against propped up pillows. She looked over at me, her face blank as she attempted to distance herself from her feelings.

"What do you need to do before...?" She began, her voice trailing off as if vocalizing the whole question would make it that much more real.

"I need samples from their lungs." I said, my voice raspy from emotion.

"Let's get to it."

I poured iodine over Angela's bare chest in preparation for the procedure that should have been preformed in a more sterile environment. Her fevered skin puckered in goose bumps at the temperature contrast of the liquid. She mumbled and tried to turn away but Bella held her steady. I took a deep breath to steady myself as I plunged the needle between her ribs, suctioning blindly for lung tissue.

I left Bella to care for Angela's wound as I walked quickly towards the high powered microscope. I prepared the slides I needed to gather more information about the virus before I moved to repeat the procedure on Ben.

Ben had been so quiet during our treatment of him and Angela that I began to wonder if he might not be as affected by the virus, but as Bella checked his vitals and prepped him for me, I realized he was actually worse than Angela. His eyes stared ahead, unseeing, and his breaths came in ragged uneven spurts. We were losing him.

I was glad then, that although Angela lay next to him, she was unaware of her surroundings. I couldn't imagine the loss and hopelessness she would feel to watch him die from the illness that affected her.

"He won't feel anything," Bella whispered. "He doesn't have much longer."

After drawing and preparing slides on Ben, I rushed back to his side where Bella sat holding his hand. I reached for his other hand and together we held onto him in a vain attempt to offer comfort while his back arched and his last breath left him in a gurgling exhale. His eyes remained wide and blood pooled in his mouth before slowly spilling over and running down his cheek.

I gently removed my hand from his and laid it on his chest. I turned to Bella, hoping her fearlessness would strengthen me and will my body to move and continue my work. Her chin jutted out in fierce determination as tears ran unhindered from her eyes. I reached towards her to wipe away her tears but she rose suddenly, purposely avoiding my touch, and lowered Ben's eyelids, and bringing his sheet up to cover his face.

She walked over to check Angela's vitals before she walked quickly from the room.

"Bella, wait," I called after her and she stopped at the door for a moment before shaking her head and leaving the room.

I caught up to her in the hallway leading from the basement to the main stairwell. I grabbed her arm and spun her to me.

"It's OK. Bella, we'll figure this out," I insisted, as she pushed me away halfheartedly.

"Please," she whimpered, burying her face in my chest. "I can't lose you."

"I'm right here baby. I'm not going anywhere." I whispered, holding her tightly and rubbing her back.

"I'm so scared," she cried, gripping my shirt tightly in her fists.

She looked up at me, her eyes wide and trusting. I leaned down and placed a gentle kiss to her lips.

What began as a loving kiss, meant to reassure and comfort, became deeper and transformed into desperate passion. We kissed and groped, pushed and pulled as we shed clothes. Our need for each other overrode any conscious thought of taking our time.

We were out of time.

We both knew it and it changed something inside of us. We had finally found each other after a lifetime of self-denial and we were desperate for that one last connection before everything crumbled before us once again.

I claimed her against the wall in the dark hallway, frantic to feel her around me as if it was the last time. I hated to ruin this moment with hopeless thoughts and I struggled to clear them from my mind as I held her against me.

Bella gripped my shoulders and wrapped her legs around me pulling me towards her as if we could get any closer.

Bella buried her face in my neck and a small sob escaped as we came together. After several minutes I lowered her gently to stand beside me and I grabbed the nearest shirt, which happened to be mine, and dressed her.

I tucked her into my side, unwilling to lose even the smallest contact with her, as we walked back into the basement.

Later that evening, as the setting sun cast long shadows through the basement's high windows, Angela's coughing stopped and her body stilled as she joined Ben in death.

The next few days passed in a blur. Bella and I fought sleep as we worked together, testing the remaining samples from Ben and Angela, and running tests on my own blood to try and find the missing link that would be the answer to the antiviral.

I growled and pounded my fist on the table in frustration as the most recent antiviral test failed. Bella jumped at my outburst as she sat on the floor, trying to reorganize the reports I had destroyed before she came.

She had been quiet all day, moving slowly through the room as I worked, in an attempt to keep herself busy, I assumed, as the weight of Angela's death saddened us both.

I looked up at her as she stood silently beside me holding a piece of paper. I noticed her hands were shaking as she held it out to me.

In that moment, time seemed to slow as I took the time to truly look at her for the first time that day. Her face was pale but her cheeks were red and her eyes were glassy. Her breaths were quickened and shallow.

I raised my hand slowly and placed it lightly against her forehead. She was burning hot.

"Bella?" I asked.

She nodded her head as the tears spilled from her eyes.

"How long?" I asked, my mind racing to compare the timetable between Ben and Angela and Bella's falling ill.

"Two days," she whispered apologetically, "I thought I was just tired."

I wanted to be mad at her for not telling me as soon as she felt less than perfect, but I couldn't. I wanted to rage and destroy the lab, burn it down along with everything in it including myself. I had secretly prayed that I would wake up from this nightmare and we would all be back home before Ben and Angela had ever found us. We would have lived quietly, growing old together, raising children, and sharing life with everyone.

But as I continued to stare at Bella's wilting form, my anguish only fueled me. I scooped her up and placed her in our bed, propped up on pillows and lightly covered. I forced her to drink one full bottle of water and eat a protein bar before I placed several more water bottles beside her.

"I'm going to make it better, Bella." I promised her as I swept the hair from her forehead.

She closed her eyes and leaned into my touch. "I love you," she whispered and I choked back a sob.

I watched her for several moments as she drifted off to sleep. As I stood to leave I noticed the paper she still had clutched in her hand. I removed it slowly, trying not to disturb her. I flattened it out against the table, curious about what she had come to show me.

I sighed in exasperation as I read the title: _**Genetic mutation causes immunity in descendants of Spanish Influenza survivors.**_

**A/N: **So, yeah...

Thank you all for waiting ;) I hope you all know how much I love you!

**Roselover24 **interviewed me and my beta for her review of The Colony. I'm told it will be posted on her blog Thursday. www(.)sytycw(.)com. We had a blast chatting with her!

**Behind the Clouds **by **EchoesOfTwilight** owned me hard this week. It is AU, wonderfully written, with an amazing twist.


	19. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight.**

**My beta, Bublichka, owns me.**

**Chapter 19 **

**EPOV **

I stared at the paper in front of me. I'd seen it before, months ago, when I came across the bootleg report in that high school science classroom. Bella and I had argued about it as well, as she pushed me to consider every option. At the time I had resigned myself to my supposed fate, life in the colony and loving Bella. I didn't want to be reminded then of my past failure, I was finally letting go.

But it was with new eyes, as Bella lay shivering on our bed, that I read the paper in front of me hoping that it held every answer I needed because right now I had nothing.

_**Genetic mutation causes immunity in descendants of Spanish Influenza survivors.**_

_A response to the research and theories of Dr. Edward Masen. _

_By Dr. Banner _

_In light of the recent Pandemic status of the H9N2, I have attempted to contact Dr. Masen, a former friend and colleague. My correspondences have remained unanswered, so I am taking to my blog to address what I feel are gross inaccuracies involving this deadly virus. _

_I've have been lucky to attend several symposiums in the field of Virology. It was there, at the last gathering, that I was introduced to immunities caused by genetic mutations._

_I have studied the H9N2 virus extensively and feel this theory applies to the answer we have been working so hard to find. _

_It is my belief that descendants of Spanish flu survivors have a mutation which makes the cells in their respiratory system almost impermeable to most illnesses that affect the lungs. _

_I have found in my own research that families with one survivor in their lineage are less susceptible to something as small as the common cold whereas those with survivors on both sides are completely immune to respiratory illnesses. The old adage of 'good genes' in the explanation of good health is truer than they know. _

_Based on these findings, I believe the answer to H9N2 survival is best found within this small group of people. _

I looked up from the page, fighting with myself to crumple the paper and toss it over my shoulder. My first reaction was to call him out on his arrogance. Former friend and colleague? My father and I had worked closely for so long, I'm sure I would have heard of this Dr. Banner before now. If he was even a real doctor. He was probably just a chiropractor or DO.

Could it be that simple? Simple, ha. Nothing was simple now.

I loaded an old slide of an original patient suffering from H9N2 and adjusted the settings, making it as clear as possible. The slide contained lung tissue taken only days after contracting the virus and was a mixture of healthy tissue not yet affected as well as several infected and badly damaged cells. The healthy cells looked 'normal' with the appropriate anatomical structures present; a nucleus and cell wall being the most obvious. The sick cells showed cell walls that were deteriorating, causing the cell to lose it's structure before breaking down completely.

I then loaded the slide from Angela, but her cells had already been so badly damaged that I was unable to determine if her healthy cells were different in structure to the older slide. Ben's were the same. Too damaged to do anything more.

I ran my hand over my ribs, trying to determine whether I could take my own lung tissue, before I berated myself for being so silly. Despite my hesitation over hurting Bella, if she had been given the option she would physically forced me to experiment on her.

I prepared the supplies I would need and made my way over to where she slept.

I stood over her watching her sleep. Every few seconds she would shiver and moan as the fever raged uncontrolled. I kneeled beside her and gripped her hand, letting her sharp heat warm my own hand. I watched in agony as she parted her chapped lips and whispered my name before groaning as another round of shivers shook her body. She was wheezing slightly and the cough would be next in the line up of symptoms she would contract before she...

_No._ _Not her,_ I prayed to whoever was listening as I pushed my mind to work faster. If these rogue theories were correct, I was close.

I couldn't let Ben and Angela die in vain and I could not live without Bella.

"Bella," I whispered softly and wondered if she even heard me, "I'm going to take some blood baby."

I wrapped the tourniquet around her arm and cringed as I had to dig for a vein due to her dehydrated state. I finally succeeded and I watched the blood pour into the tube, fogging the glass with it's heat. She stirred and her eyes slowly opened. She caught sight of me and looked down at the needle still embedded in her arm. She smiled softly and once again closed her eyes.

Next I lifted her shirt, using the last of the iodine to sanitize the site, and with a morbid sense of deja vu, I got ready to extract several tissue samples from her lungs.

"Hold still baby," I whispered and she nodded almost imperceptibly before I guided the large needle into her chest.

My hands were shaking as I loaded the new slide onto the platform. I could only guess that Bella had been immune to the original virus since she had worked so closely with sick patients and never contracted the illness. I assumed based on Banner's 'research' that her lung cells would show how the supposed genetic mutation affected her cells. As long as they weren't already too damaged.

My stomach clenched in anticipation as I lowered my eye to the eye piece and took in the healthy cells before me. My breath left me in a shaky exhale as I realized the virus hadn't affected as many cells as I'd feared. I took my time slowly looking over the cluster of cells, trying to find the neon sign that would alert me to the difference.

The slide blurred under my tired eyes and I rubbed them wearily and shook my head to clear it.

On my second pass, I noticed a lone cell off to the side and thrilled at the find, knowing it would be easier to identify cell structure. I intensified the strength and began cataloging it's anatomy.

When I reached the outer walls of the cell I pulled away from the eye piece fearing that once again my eyes were blurring and causing my view to be compromised.

I looked again and saw it. A thin circle surrounded the outer cell wall, almost like a protective shield. I'd never seen anything like it and the scientist in my reveled at the monumental find.

I got up and began pacing the room, the excitement fueling me.

Banner had been on to something after all.

But now what? What in the virus had mutated making Bella susceptible to it's virulence when she had obviously been protected before?

I wondered if the mutation had somehow weakened the virus and whether our previous anti-virals would affect it.

I stood vigilant beside Bella's bed while the pieces slowly fell into place.

Ben and Angela had been immune as was my father and the others in our colony.

The virus had mutated, it's DNA changing to adapt to new environments.

My father had died because the virus mutated first at ground zero. The lock preventing us from catching it in the first place now had a key. I needed to find the 'key' or the part of the virus that had mutated to determine the cure. The shield around our cells was like a lock, keeping us from contracting the bug. But now the virus had a key and had made it's way into Ben and Angela, violently claiming them, before also finding Bella.

I wondered now, if anyone else at the colony was sick, and when, not if I would fall ill. I decided to try and get a hold of anyone at the colony to check on them. I hadn't stopped to think about how worried they would be and how anxious they would be for news. I wondered if the CB would even reach them, but I had to try.

I raised Bella to sit and she groaned at the pressure of my hands against her back. I held the water bottle to her lips and forced her to drink. She swallowed sleepily then uttered a quiet 'thank you' as I lowered her down again. I would have to start an IV when I got back. I pushed back the hair that had fallen in her face and remembered my first night of patrol when she had brought me a quilt to stay warm and called me out on my bullshit. She was lying beside me and I already missed her. She had cared for me when I wasn't capable of caring back and now it was my turn. I'd give her my soul if that's what she needed to get better.

"Bella, I'm going to go to the Land Rover to see if I can check in at home," I said quietly as I gently nudged her to make sure she heard me. I didn't want her waking up and finding me gone.

"OK," she mumbled, "tell them I said Hi."

I chuckled as I stood and made my way back into the parking garage where I had left the Land Rover. It felt like years had passed but it sat untouched. I turned the key in the ignition just enough to fire up the battery and flipped the switch on the CB. The air filled with static and I slowly began to go through the channels waiting several minutes after each 'hello' as I attempted to make contact. _Another flaw in your wonderful plan_, I chastised myself. I should have asked Jasper what channel they would be on.

On my third pass through the channels I heard loud crackling before an excited yell rang out and I gave a large sigh of relief.

"Edward?" squeaked Alice.

"Hi," I said quietly, suddenly as homesick as if it was my first night at sleep away camp.

"Oh Edward! Jazz! Jazz!" she yelled, forgetting to release the mic before calling out. I heard more excited talking and shuffling as Alice handed over the mic.

"Is everything OK?" Jasper asked as he finally got situated.

"No," I said solemnly, "is everyone there OK? Is anyone sick?" I asked, fear creeping into my voice.

"We're fine," Jasper said hurriedly. "What's going on Edward?"

My throat tightened with emotion and I couldn't speak.

"Edward? Please." It was Carlisle now.

"Ben and Angela," I began, "they're gone."

Several 'I'm sorry's filtered through the distance and I braced myself to tell them the worst. I knew they would feel bad over Ben and Angela's death but we were all deeply connected to Bella and this was going to hurt.

"B-Bella is..." I stuttered choking on my words and releasing the mic.

There was silence between us, the distance feeling much larger than the 2 hour trip up the highway. I cleared my throat and spoke into the mic again.

"Bella is sick, but I have some more insight. I just wanted you all to know." I finished in almost a whisper.

"We know you can do this Edward," Jasper said and I heard sniffling in the background.

"I have to get back. I'll call you soon," I said.

"Over and out." Jasper responded and I wondered if that would be the last time I spoke with them.

Several tears escaped and ran down my cheeks before I steeled myself to return to Bella.

I hadn't expected the call to evoke such loneliness. I wondered how I had ever gone without friends and family around me for so long.

I quietly made my way back into the basement and tiredly gathered the supplies for Bella's IV. The day had been emotionally draining and after I hooked Bella up to her IV, I lay beside her as close as I could without raising her body temperature or making her uncomfortable. My hand hovered over her arm as my hand ached to touch her. Bella shifted and slowly moved to lay against my side, draping her arm across my chest as if she knew I needed the contact from her. I kissed her forehead, wishing that small action would take some of the heat from her.

I awoke from my nap sweating under Bella. I carefully removed myself from her embrace and sat up. I checked her IV to make sure she had enough to last for awhile as well as did a quick assessment of her vitals. Her heartbeat remained strong yet fast, and even though the wheeze was more pronounced, she didn't seem to be breathing any harder than before. It was reassuring and made me feel better about the time consuming task I had before me. I knew if Bella had worsened I wouldn't be able to concentrate and I needed all the time I could get. I was certain once I became involved in the painstaking process of testing, time would fly.

I sat heavily in my chair and ran my fingers through my hair before grabbing the first of several slides to begin the arduous process of elimination.

* * *

**A/N: **The Colony reached 500 reviews with chapter 18!! I thank you all for taking the time to tell me what you think and feel. You're the best!


	20. Chapter 20

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight**

**My Beta, Bublichka, owns me.**

**Chapter 20**

**EPOV**

Slides lay scattered and broken on the floor, glittering in the sunlight that was now streaming through the windows. I no longer knew what day it was or how long I had been awake. I was using the backside of the pages from my father's report to meticulously record the test runs and the results. At times the writing was almost illegible as I fought the rage I felt when a test did not work out.

I prepared myself for another disappointment as I gathered the Petri dish, running another test to see if the new antiviral would do it's job. Every trial before had resulted in a Petri dish teeming with active cells which was not the result I was looking for. I had three more trials prepared before I would have to go back in and take more lung tissue from Bella. She was deteriorating before my eyes and I did not want to do any more invasive procedures.

The most recent trial incorporated the newly discovered information with the old ideas to create an antiviral that would destroy the virus in the same way it was now destroying Bella's healthy lung cells. The original virus, I discovered, was missing a crucial protein which supposedly inhibited the lucky descendant's cells from allowing the virus access. As the virus mutated, it created this missing key and was now able to affect anyone. Using Dr. Banner's theory and the genetic makeup of the virus I was able to create several formulas.

I mixed various enzymes in an attempt to dissolve the cell wall so that the phagocytes could eat the rapidly multiplying virus before it could infect more healthy cells.

If I could just create the antiviral I would be granted so much more time to then develop a vaccine.

I could help those who were sick and protect those who hadn't fallen ill yet. My resolve was not one of grandeur as it had been in the past when I pushed myself to surpass my father's greatness. Now I worked for Bella and the rest of my family who, although they said no one was sick, could now catch the mutated virus as well.

Bella had begun coughing just before dawn and it took all I had to continue working instead of spending the rest of her time holding her in my arms. My resolve to find a cure was weakening as hopelessness threatened to overcome me. I wanted to be close to Bella so I wouldn't miss one second of her being in my life after living so long without her.

I sat with her between tests, talking quietly while I held her hand. I told her stories of my childhood and college frat parties. I spoke of our future and my vision of our little girl. I knew she might not be able to hear me, but I prattled on, giving her everything I had.

The mechanical beep signaled the end of another test run. _Fourth time's the charm_ I thought wryly to myself as I raised my tired body to take the three steps necessary to reach the testing apparatus.

Bella shifted on our bed, her breathing was labored and her wheezing filled the room. I held out hope that if I could figure it out and save Bella, her lung function would not be horribly compromised from the damage.

My body ached from tense muscles and bending over lab tables and a wave of exhaustion hit me. I rushed to sit down before I dropped the test results, rendering the information useless.

It passed just as quickly as it came and I stood once again for better access to the microscope.

What I saw when I lowered my eye to the lens took the breath right out of me. The organisms in the dish were still and the numbers were the same. The virus' cells had been compromised, making them inactive and unable to reproduce.

I looked over my work for that run, noting what had been done differently and prepared to run another sample of the same test before I became too excited over a fluke.

I had the possible answer right in front of me and while I wanted to immediately test it on Bella, my head remained clear enough to know that a definite answer would only come from running it again.

As I set the timer for what was hopefully the last test, Bella began coughing in earnest. She began gasping as her lungs tried to gain purchase on what oxygen it could. She gave a watery exhale and settled once again as I sat beside her and lovingly stroked her face.

"I remember the first time I saw you," I whispered before I began to recount the night our lives were changed forever, keeping an optimistic tone to my voice as I struggled to keep it light and not sound as if I was telling her goodbye.

I told her how I felt seeing her hovering over me while gently holding my face. I explained the fire I felt in her touch and I apologized for the way I behaved while confused by the dark and her presence. I kissed her fingers as I recounted how I felt the night we made love. I gazed at her watching her face change as she watched a dream play out behind her eyelids. Her brow furrowed and she whimpered before her face morphed into peace once again. I wanted her to know everything, so when I finished with my more current memories I opened up to her about my past. I told her of holidays and birthdays. I admitted my fears and told her about my constant need for approval and my desire to follow in my father's work and fill the shoes his death left empty.

I rambled on, filling the silence that I had once loved, but now just amplified the loneliness.

My throat was dry and my voice rough by the time the signal sounded, alerting me to another finished test.

This time as I rose to examine the dish, my stomach was filled with anxious butterflies instead of the cold despair of disappointment. If I was right, this test would be the confirmation that I had found the answer.

I found myself in front of the microscope, once again looking through the eyepiece, for hopefully the last time.

A shout of triumph erupted from my mouth as I sank to me knees, flooded with relief, elation, and thanks. I wiped my eyes to clear my teary vision and immediately began mixing the antiviral components with a base and tweaking percentages.

I wiped Bella's skin, just below her shoulder, with an alcohol swab before administering the medication that would bring her back to me. I willed the medicine to begin it's work. I knew it could take several days to notice any improvement but I was also impatient and craving even the smallest sign that Bella was getting better. I also prayed that the virus had not done too much damage on her precious lung tissue. In another time we would have copious amounts of medicine to treat the inevitable lessening of lung capacity. Now, we would have to treat any side effects with unreliable and sometimes ineffective home remedies.

I continued to monitor Bella, dozing off and on, as the late afternoon progressed and the room became bathed in a warm pink glow.

*~*~*~*

A light but insistent tapping woke me and I looked around, startled, and strained to see in the darkness around me. I zeroed in on the sensation and looked down at my arm that had fallen between me and Bella.

Her hand rested beside mine and she was tapping out a gentle rhythm against my forearm. I raised my eyes to her face and I noticed in the dim light from the moon outside that she was awake.

I flicked on the flashlight and held it up to illuminate us without causing the light to shine directly in Bella's face.

Her eyes were still shining with fever but my hope was intensified as this was the first time she had woken up in days.

"Hi," I said quietly, smiling so wide it hurt.

"Hey," she rasped then attempted to clear her throat before dissolving into a coughing fit. Her fingers gripped my arm like a vice as she struggled to catch her breath.

I looked on worriedly as she once again slipped into a restless sleep, the energy exerted exhausting her easily. I listened intently to her breathing as I tried to hear any changes that would mean she was worsening or improving.

Several days passed in the same way, with Bella becoming more alert and staying awake longer. Her fever broke two days after receiving the antiviral and although she continued to cough, it was drier and the wheezing had almost disappeared. She was still unable to walk herself to the bathroom without having to stop several times to catch her breath. As she leaned against me, I struggled with the desire to just pick her up and carry her, but she had become more determined as she healed to return to normal and home as soon as possible.

"Am I that hard to be around all the time?" I asked jokingly when she brought it up again.

"Always," she said as she rolled her eyes and snuggled into me, "it would be nice to sleep in a real bed."

"Yes, it would," I agreed and popped my back loudly for emphasis, "I just don't want to cause a set back."

"Fresh air will do me good," she argued, "plus you won't have to wait on me. You know Alice and Esme will fight over who gets a turn to play mommy to me."

"You're right, you are a pain in the ass," I sighed as I failed to hide my teasing smirk. I would be lying if I said I wasn't as anxious, if not more to get home. We'd been lucky to stay here for so long unbothered. Everyday we stayed only pushed our luck that much farther.

Early the next day, I carefully packed my notes and gently wrapped the vials of medicine I was able to create along with supplies to administer the antiviral if needed, in a small box. I left Bella sitting by the door as I ran the stairs to the Land Rover to pack the last of our supplies.

We entered the courtyard one last time to grab the small fuel tank that had been strapped to Bella's bike and left behind when Bella joined me. We stopped in front of the two identical mounds of dirt where Ben and Angela now lay. We had said our goodbyes a lifetime before, it seemed, but felt the need to pay our respects one last time.

The two grave sites would forever serve as a reminder of the lives lost and the final driving force behind the vaccines development. I silently promised them, that one day I would return and give them the markers they deserved.

Bella began to wilt under the heat and excitement over the day and she clung to me as we made our slow way to the Land Rover. I held her hand as I helped her up into her seat and watched as she struggled with the seat belt. I looked on warily, struggling with the urge to do it for her to save her the trouble. She insisted on being treated normally and I wanted to wrap her in padding and place her in a glass case. I'm not sure the feeling would ever go away after coming so close to losing her.

She leaned back and closed her eyes when she had won her fight with the offending contraption. I kissed her temple and offered a silent prayer of thanks for her life and her tenacious spirit. She smiled sleepily as she snuggled into the seat, getting comfortable for the long ride home.

I took notice as I made my up I-75 from the city and through the northern suburbs of Atlanta. I actively looked for other people and signs of other colonies that may have cropped up. I mentally listed areas with possible activity as I planned my next steps. Now that I had the cure I couldn't keep it to myself as others died.

The real work would take place now as I attempted to contact others to help spread the word of my find and help others who may be sick. I would need everyone's help in the planning and execution of my budding plan as I anticipated several long stretches of time away from home. I learned my lesson, though, and even as I spent the drive plotting out the next several months, it was useless without everyone's input.

I woke Bella as we approached the turn off to Woodmont.

"We're almost home, baby," I whispered as I stroked her cheek.

She leaned into my touch and whispered, "yay" while she rubbed at her eyes and brushed the hair from her face. I could no longer contain the goofy grin that spread across my face and the excitement that threatened to bubble over as I turned and plowed through the underbrush that lined the dirt road leading to the large wooden gates.

Bella laced her fingers through mine and gave a gentle squeeze as I honked the horn several times before I climbed out as the doors swung open revealing a curious Emmett. Realizing it was me, he ran forward smiling and wrapped me in a tight hug. I looked over his shoulder and laughed as I saw everyone else frozen in various activities, no doubt in shock at the sight before them.

Emmett held me at arms length as he looked at me seriously. He opened his mouth probably to ask about Bella, when the passenger door opened and Bella slowly lowered herself from the seat.

"Bella!" Emmett yelled as he pushed me aside in his haste to get to her. He picked her up in a gentle hug and sighed as she reciprocated the affection.

Soon, we were both engulfed in welcoming hugs, and tears from everyone, as we stood in the gateway talking excitedly over each other in joyous reunion.

We sat around the fire that night after our precious supplies had been securely placed in the clinic and Bella had lost the battle with Alice and Esme to go straight to bed.

I filled them in on the time we were gone, my research, and eventual desperation that led to further investigation into Dr. Banner's theory. Everyone was shocked to learn of their probable ancestral ties to survivors of the Spanish flu and that it was how they survived the first wave.

I insisted everyone be thoroughly checked in the morning and made everyone promise to alert me if they so much as sneezed.

Carlisle had been covering my patrol shift as well as his while we were gone. I felt indebted to him in so many ways that even though he insisted I go to Bella and sleep I remained with him after everyone had gone to bed. I opened up about my plan to spread the word about the cure and how to duplicate it. We discussed the ins and outs and thought out several scenarios.

The fastest plan involved splitting up to reach others faster, while another involved passing on the information through the connections that other colonies may have with each other.

Regardless it would involve leaving the comfort of our established family and venturing into the unknown, blind faith leading us once again.

~*~*~*~*~

**A/N:** So there you have it. Please forgive the delay, I was discouraged and my beta and I were attacked by real life. Next up is the epilogue.

Thank you to everyone reading, favoriting, and alerting. This writing thing wouldn't have been half as fun without you all.

Keep your eyes open after the epilogue… the amazing **Belli486**, who writes** Trust Loyalty and commitment**, purchased a 'The Colony' outtake through The Fandom Gives Back auction.


	21. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight**

**Bublichka is THE most bestest, fuckawesomnest Beta I have ever had the LUCK to work with. She has been my fandom guide and she is a saint to put up with my story waffling and pretentious ego flairs. She is so over me, but helps me anyway ;) I LOVE YOU MY MOST SPECIAL FANDOM BFF!!!!!!!**

**A/N: I can explain… see below**

**Chapter 21**

**BPOV**

We sat together once again around the long table in the main hall of Woodmont, like we had when we'd first arrived. Instead of discussing our survival, we were now planning our future and what it entailed. Some of us would have to leave in order to reach the many people who needed the antiviral and those who could help pass along the information. Although we were all willing to leave, we knew it was not wise to do so.

Edward still believed it was solely his responsibility to notify others of his discovery and I wasn't going anywhere without him.

"There's too many of us to go together," Edward stated.

"That's one of the reasons we're not going," Jasper said, speaking over Edward, "our plan was to come here and wait for anyone else who needed this refuge. Alice and I are staying."

Emmett looked torn between staying on and helping here or taking a risk and coming with us. No one could deny how his previous training would be an asset in our situation.

Rosalie stood beside him, silently communicating that she would go wherever he went. It seemed to be a trend amongst the women. We had become a very large family but were tightly bound to our significant others. While the virus had not kill us, we had each lost a part of our lives that made us appreciate what we had now. Now we all recognized the second chances we had been given and felt very protective over our men and each other.

I would miss Woodmont and our life here, especially since we had just gotten back, but my home was now with Edward. Where ever he ended up.

As if sensing my thoughts, Edward held me tighter to him while he gesticulated with his free hand. He and Carlisle had been going amicably back and forth for several days now as they debated the pros and cons of our imminent departure.

"Don't you think it'll be better to go back into Atlanta? Surely a large city like that has people returning to it, and the CDC is there," Carlisle argued.

"We were there Carlisle," Edward argued as he turned to look at me.

"Hey, leave me out of it... I was half dead remember?" I said, raising my hands in front of me, then cringing when Edward scowled and Emmett groaned loudly, "Sorry, too early for jokes?"

"That will never be funny," Edward murmured in my ear before kissing the top of my head.

"There is nothing left at the CDC that's even useful anymore, too many medications went too long in an uncontrolled climate and everything useful was pillaged long ago. It's probably better to search in the smaller cities. They're more likely to have suffered less damage by the rioting and destruction that occurred in Atlanta."

By the time Edward's next patrol shift came around, we had come to a compromise. Alice, Jasper, Emmett and Rosalie would stay behind to maintain and continue to improve the life we had built at Woodmont while Edward, Carlisle, Esme and I would load up into one of our vehicles and make the journey south into neighboring Rome, Georgia. Rome may have been small, but it offered resources that would be beneficial to survivors looking to rebuild lives that had been taken away by the virus as it made its way through the population. Rome boasted a large hospital campus that we were hoping remained untouched or at best, operational.

Everyone retired to their respective cabins and Edward guided me to ours. He laid me on the bed and tucked me in before heading towards the door to work his shift. My heavy sigh caused him to turn and look at me warily.

"No," he said before I even opened my mouth.

"But it's our time together," I whined, not even trying to hide my petulance.

He came back over to sit beside me, "It's important that you get better so we can have all the time we want together," he said in a tone that made me bristle.

"Stop talking to me like I'm a child," I huffed and turned my head to look away from him. I was frustrated with the fact that I wasn't, in my opinion, getting better quick enough and was projecting my frustrations onto Edward. He took it all in stride and while I knew it was unfair to him, I couldn't stop myself from abusing his patience with me.

Edward leaned over and ran his fingers through my hair. My traitor body relaxed at his touch and I gave into to the exhaustion that plagued my every day.

~*~*~*~*~*

Everyone took turns sitting with me while the others prepared to leave. I was getting stronger every day but I still needed help with a lot of the mundane things that I had once taken for granted. Everyone felt it would be best if I had someone close by to help me at all times. They went back into the neighboring town and searched garages for fuel, even going as far as siphoning it from abandoned cars. They also gathered things that would be valuable for bartering like food, water and medications that would act like a currency for other things we might need.

Watching everyone work around me was frustrating. I battled feelings of worthlessness every day and it began to wear me down. At times I cursed myself for insisting on staying with Edward wherever he went but I knew I would go crazy staying at home and wondering if or when he would come back. Later, Edward confessed that even Carlisle was glad I would be coming along. Everyone had become overly attentive of me since the long term effects of my illness were unknown and it made Carlisle feel better to have me close by in case I didn't get better or developed new complications. They limited my activities and would only let me walk when it was absolutely necessary as I still became winded and remained weak. It was clear early on that my lung function was compromised due to the damage from the virus and Carlisle was unsure if I would ever regain normal lung capacity.

I tried very hard to take it in stride but still had a hard time with what I interpreted as coddling. The day before we left, I lashed out at Edward for hovering over me when all I really wanted to do was go to the bathroom, _alone_. My tantrum only served to strengthen his belief that I was still fragile because I collapsed after yelling at him.

When I came to, I was cradled against Edward's chest and the first thing I saw was his face etched with worry as he looked down on me.

"Bella," he whispered, voicing his relief before his eyes turned angry, "Do you see now? Every time you cough, every time you sleep... it sends me into a panic and I wonder..." he stopped then, trying to quiet his voice which had raised in emotion, "I came so close to losing you."

I nodded my head dumbly as he continued to stare at me and reign in his emotions. He held me close that night and I wondered if he even slept because several times I woke to find him staring at me. He would kiss me softly and run his fingers through my hair as he coaxed me back to sleep with whispered words of love.

From then on I vowed to let them care for me in whatever way made them comfortable while I quelled my stubbornness and began to be thankful I was here for them to fawn over.

~*~*~*~*

The morning we left, the air was thick with the last of summer's humidity. I walked slower than my usual snail's pace as I made my way to the waiting SUV. We knew we were coming back, but with no set timetable, our goodbye's still felt permanent and I found myself clinging to both Emmett and Alice.

Emmett chuckled and tried to joke though his voice was thick with emotion. He cleared his throat several times before gripping my shoulder and gently pushing me away towards Edward.

The backseat was laden with the quilt and pillows from our bed and I curled into myself as we pulled away from Woodmont, already exhausted.

An hour and a few wrong turns later, we were navigating the maze of streets leading into the heart of Rome. We concentrated on the landscape around us looking for signs of life and were rewarded as we turned down Broad St from 8Th with the sight of several people walking along the street in front of a few shops that had their doors propped open in welcome and to offer a little relief from the heat. It seemed as though while the town was inhabited, they were still without the comforts of electricity.

We pulled alongside the curb in the middle of a few shops, and while Esme and I looked on, Edward and Carlisle exited the car and approached a group of people who had gathered in curiosity.

There were several hesitant smiles and one daring man reached out and shook Carlisle's outstretched hand. I maneuvered my way closer to Esme who was openly eavesdropping and leaned over her in an attempt to hear as well.

Edward was speaking to the group, using the guise of two doctors and their wives looking to help in communities that needed them. He and Carlisle had decided early on not to let just anyone know what we were really offering. The fear of robbery or worse made the lie a necessity until they reached the right people.

They returned to the car openly optimistic and as we pulled away towards the hospital campus, Carlisle shared the information they had gathered from the locals who were more than happy to have two more doctors join the town. He went on to explain that what we had seen was a small glimpse at the true size of the city. Dozens of families had survived the initial outbreak and while rioting rocked the larger cities, Rome had remained largely unscathed. Over the next several months, other healthy people had wandered into town and Rome continued to function, albeit on a much smaller scale.

The campus of Floyd Medical Center loomed before us like our own personal Oz. Edward beamed in the passenger seat as Carlisle steered the car into a spot close to the main doors. We sat in silence feeling the enormity of finding this oasis and the impending work ahead.

"Are we going in?" I asked hesitantly, "we'll never know if they can help if we don't... go... in."

"Yeah, yeah," Edward said, nodding his head slowly while reaching for his door handle. He gathered the small bag that contained his research and carefully wrapped vials of antiviral and slung it over his shoulder before coming over to help me out of the car.

My legs felt like jelly from the combination of nerves and lack of exercise and I took several tentative steps while leaning heavily on Edward before trusting my legs to carry me the rest of the way.

An eerie sense of deja vue descended upon me as we entered the main hospital area and were greeted by two weary, but smiling faces behind a counter that faced an empty ER.

**A/N: As many of you may have noticed, this isn't the epilogue. I have a couple more chapters to go until I can feel like I did this story justice.**

**The fandom is nothing without it's readers! So, in honor of Reader appreciation day, thank you all for reading, reviewing, and just being awesome! **

**I'm incredibly honored to say that The Colony was nominated for an indie. HUGE thank you to those who nominated The Colony. I'm eternally grateful!**


	22. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight.**

**Bublichka, my beta, owns me. Always.**

**Epilogue**

EPOV

Walking into the ER that day was the true turning point in our journey.

The small town of Rome contained others, like us, who were determined to survive this new life civilly and become a thriving community once again.

The two men that greeted our arrival introduced us to the man who single handedly cared for the 150 residents and had become a sort of leader, Dr. Volturi. After getting settled we spent the evening sitting around the large dining room table of the once bed and breakfast that was now our home talking with the brave man as he told of his and the residents survival. Many residents had traveled even farther than Ben and Angela had. They'd struggled through similarly dangerous situations while some had fought for their lives in astonishing tales of survival. Given this information we soon realized we were among people like us and we slowly began to trust them.

As the evening wound down, Dr. Volturi divulged important information to Carlisle and I, obviously excited over his new colleagues. He must have seen something trustworthy in us to accept us so readily and began to animatedly explain the connections he had formed with several important people through the use of a HAM radio housed in the local college.

He had stumbled upon it by accident early on in the aftermath of societal breakdown while searching for survivors and supplies in the small town. He'd rifled through the channels, broadcasting to anyone who could hear. He returned day after day at the same time, sending the same message of hope and community. Slowly people began trickling into the town and he was elated to see his message was actually reaching someone and so he continued until one day while scanning channels he came upon a broadcast from Washington, DC.

Members of the US government were using an emergency type broadcast trying their best to gather information on the number of survivors and functioning towns. Since that day, Dr. Volturi began taking part in conference calls with the group every two weeks. The next call was 3 days away and Dr. Volturi insisted that we join him.

At that time we decided it was time to share with him our discovery and what really brought us to his doorstep. To say Dr. Volturi was enthusiastic would be an understatement and he buzzed with an excited energy as we waited for those few days to pass.

After a lengthy private discussion with the DC liaison, we had 48 hours to prepare ourselves for the trip up North. They were sending down a guarded Humvee to escort us to where they were going to prove my research.

It may have been too late for so many people, but in the end, the anti-viral worked.

It took months before it was able to be reproduced in large enough quantities and even longer before it reached people around the world.

78% of the world population had died from either the original virus or its strong mutation.

Despite our intense attachments and history, the little family we worked so hard to build was split up eventually. Emmett and Rosalie moved north to DC where Emmett was quickly promoted into one of many empty positions within the National Guard Ranks. Thankfully he more than qualified and definitely had the know how, unlike many of the fresh but eager recruits he now led. You can bet they've learned to never leave a man behind.

We gathered as a family one last time as Rosalie and Emmett were officially joined as husband and wife and delighted in the impending arrival of their baby.

Angela Marie McCarty was born a few months later, healthy, and weighing in at a dainty seven pounds three ounces.

Jasper and Alice remained at Woodmont. Since there was no claim laid to the property, all of the people who were tied to its ownership dead, they ended up signing a new lease for the now free land. They remodeled some of the cabins into small dormitories and would take in transitioning families and orphaned children and teach them how to be self sufficient in the changing world. They worked closely with the government as they tried to find homes and jobs. The newly instated Department of World Renewal paid the couple a stipend for their hard work.

Carlisle and Esme stayed with us when we were eventually returned to Atlanta. Carlisle went back to his medicine at the now smaller Emory hospital. The CDC was rebuilt and I by default became the head of the CDC, though research still took up much of my time.

Esme would stay home with Bella, who no matter how hard she tried, still just wasn't up to her old career as nurse or research assistant.

She and Esme would go on to create and run a small volunteer day care center for families rebuilding their lives in Atlanta.

Two full years would pass before Bella had been rehabilitated enough to be considered healthy and we anxiously moved ahead in our lives and began planning for the children we hoped to one day have.

While the pain of what happened would remain with us, we were thankful everyday for the experiences that brought us together and the people who enabled us to live and love again.

**A/N: **For everyone still with me, simply saying 'Thank You' could never really convey how much your support has meant to me. You're priceless in my eyes.


	23. FGB Outtake Emmett

**A/N:** This is for Belli486, who so generously donated to Fandom Gives Back, for Pre-outbreak outtakes of The Colony. I'm forever grateful for her patience.

Izzzyy, thank you for your mad beta skillz.

**Emmett outtake**

I pace outside the room. My boots tread heavily on the wood floor. Behind the door I hear murmured voices and muffled grunts.

I run my hands over my face. I'm so fucking tired, and she's so fucking mad. When I was allowed to leave base I was covered in dried mud, caked thick along my sleeves and knees. I'd been crawling through the mud for days, training. I had just enough time to change into cleaner fatigues. She knew why I was gone. She knew why I couldn't rush here as soon as her water broke. But she was mad, resentful, and I couldn't blame her.

The voices escalate in excitement, there is a long scream, a quick cheer and then she's crying. She's hurting without me, thinking I'm not here with her, but I am. I hear a lusty wail of another someone who's pissed, but this one isn't mad at me. It's tired from the struggle and harsh reality of the cold world.

I open the door slowly, quieting my feet as I move to stand along the edge of the drawn curtain. I peek around to see her face buried in my mother's chest. My mother, who supported us and cared for Becky like she was her own. Better than the parents who raised her and abandoned her over the choices she made.

My mother looks up, surprised to see my eyes around the curtain. She smiles widely.

Becky is still crying, exhaustion evident in her slumped form. She's worked hard. My heart aches for her and my arms burn to feel her. I've been gone too long. I didn't go out to cure late night cravings, I didn't hold her hand during ultrasounds and I never saw her belly grow with the weight of half of me. But I was gone, for her. I was away to make myself a better man, for her. I wanted to make her proud. She was more than some small town girl statistic. We were more than this little town. I'd joined the National Guard, just a few months after we'd found out she was pregnant, knowing it would offer us the security we needed at the time. I didn't realize I'd miss so much.

My mother is moving from her now as the nurse bends to place the bundle in her arms. I stumble my way towards Becky, drawn to her and the life we've made. Her tears begin to fall again, slower this time. There is no hurt or pain remaining in her form. Her tears are thick with love and I want to be a part of it, but I'm afraid to make my presence known. I'm afraid to face the anger over what I couldn't do, when all I wanted was to make everything better.

She looks up, meeting my eyes for the first time and blinks slowly, not believing I'm there. I remove my hat, revealing my matted, sweaty hair turned auburn by the red Georgia clay.

"You stink," she whispers, her voice thick with tears and raspy from strain. I shrug as a hopeful smile begins to form on my face. Her eyes. Her eyes show hurt and love and understanding and I know I'm forgiven. She turns the bundle towards me and as she announces I have a son, and a chair is hurriedly placed behind me as my knees give out at the sight. Jet black hair, curled just so around his ears. He's brought his fist to his mouth and is actively sucking as if his tiny fingers hold what he needs. Frustrated, he begins to scowl. His face scrunches up in an almost comical way before he's once again bellowing.

My wife is tired. The nurses are encouraging her to offer her breast, but she just wants to sleep. It's been days of effort and she's fading fast. I ask gently for a bottle, staring down the nurse who is daring to make our choices for us.

I'm in charge now.

Becky has already dozed off by the time I bring him into my arms. When the nurse returns, I'm in the rocking chair in the corner opening the tight folds of the stiff blanket to hold my son's hand. His fingers grasp my pinkie turning the tip purple in his tiny fist. I smile reveling in the strength of someone so small.

I bring the nipple to his mouth and he frantically roots for it before latching on and pulling deep. His eyes roll back in rapture as he sucks and slurps the thick liquid. Minutes later, as he begins to fall asleep, his mouth twitches up in a tiny smirk and a dimple forms in his right cheek.

I hold his head in my hand and watch as his face morphs, his eyebrows rising comically and his mouth shifting from smile to frown then back again.

My wife and my son are adrift in peaceful dreams and I close my eyes for a minute and relish in the peace that has come into my soul.

I awake with a start and struggle to get a bearing on my surroundings. I'm lying on a bunk in a small cabin. It's still dark out but the night sounds are dying, being replaced by the animals that can sense the approaching daylight. I hear shuffling around me as others toss and turn in their own dreams and memories.

I close my eyes again and try to bring back the visions of what was, while trying to banish the thoughts of what could have been. And I pray that she isn't mad.


End file.
